They Call Me Ebony: War Upon Us
by Dndchk
Summary: The sequel to part one! The Marauders, James, Sirius, Remus, Peter and Elizabeth are back to cause more mayhem at Hogwarts, but in the meantime, they have to work on their newest projects: Helping Remus with his monthly transformations and creating the most awesome pranking tool ever heard of! What could go wrong, really? Previously titled They call me Ebony Part Two.
1. Potter Manor

**A/N: Hello again! Here we are with… *drumroll* PAAAART TWOOOOO! Now, let's have a BEACH PARTY! IN! LONDON! *da na na na na na da na na na na na dun dun ba dum!* Stop stop stop! Pasolitarius Shrinkydinkius!**

**I tried alligator and crawfish while in New Orleans. They tasted like chicken-I think the Matrix has been acting up again…**

**Anyway, for story purposes, I decree that house-elves can conjure stuff like wizards and do automatic paint jobs. Probably not possible, but hey, I think it's cool. Whatever. Also, since nobody really knows how the Animagus process works, I'm just making up my own version. EAT IT, LOSERS!**

**By the way, is anyone else ecstatic that they finally got Chamber of Secrets up on Pottermore?**

**Anywho, to make up for my ridiculously short chapters at the end of part one, I'll be giving you a super-duper-long chapter this time. I enjoyed writing this! Yay for character development, of a sort! Also, since the kids are starting to get a bit older now, there will be more than three swears throughout this whole story- younger readers have been warned, but then again, that IS why I rated this thing T...**

**Disclaimer: I own the OCs and the plot, and my demon guinea pigs. I do not own any other characters, Ranger's Apprentice (See if you can spot the references!) or the Potter Puppet Pals, dangit.**

**Snape. Snape. Severus Snape.**

**DUMBLEDORE!**

**Hehe. I'll let you read now.**

* * *

"CHRISTOPHER!" Liz roared. "Give it back NOW!"

"Make me," her little brother taunted. He waved her copy of _Jinxes for the Jinxed_ tauntingly, just out of her reach. Liz lunged at the tiny blond boy, but he danced away, giggling like an idiot.

Christopher Matthew Auberey. Those three words were the bane of her existence. The two siblings didn't look much alike- Where Liz had inherited her mother's brown hair and slightly tanned complexion, and their father's hazel eyes, Chris got their father's blonde hair, pale skin, and their grandfather's blue eyes. They couldn't have had more different interests, either. Liz enjoyed her books, while Chis had tried his hand at every sport under the sun. She liked to tell him that when he was playing Quidditch for England, she expected prime tickets to every game.

"What's going on in here?" Mr. Auberey asked, a frown on his face.

"Chris stole my book and won't give it back!" Liz snapped.

"Elizabeth was ignoring me!" Chris whined.

"Do I need to send you both to your rooms?" their father asked.

"No, dad," they chorused.

"Christopher, give your sister her book back. Elizabeth, don't yell in the house." Chris reluctantly handed the book back to Liz. As soon as Mr. Auberey left, Chris blew a raspberry at his sister and darted off to wreck havoc elsewhere. Liz sat down huffily on the sofa and cracked her book back open. She already had her homework done, thanks to her mother, although she would have preferred to put it off until the last possible minute.

Liz had been grounded for the pranks at school for nearly three weeks. Her mother had locked her reading books in the attic and refused to let her even go to the library for that whole time. Just for something to do, Liz had turned to her homework. She was that desperate for something to read.

Today was her first day of being ungrounded, and Liz wanted to enjoy it as much as she could, but there was a small problem that kept her from enjoying her book- she had a headache. It wasn't just a little 'oh, my head kind of hurts' headache, noooo, she just had to get a bloody migraine. The shouting really hadn't helped either.

Liz felt horrible. The past five days or so, she'd been feeling ill and irritable for no reason. Her mother had threatened to prolong her punishment if her attitude din't pick up, so Liz ha done her best to keep her temper in check, and so far hadn't been doing too badly, but Chris snatching her book pushed her over the edge.

Liz thought she heard her parents talking in their bedroom and silently shut her book without marking her spot. She padded down the hallway in her socks, kneeling outside the door, which was slightly ajar. She pressed her eye to the crack.

Mrs. Auberey was pacing in her dressing gown. "I don't understand it, Jeff, she's been acting so strangely lately." Liz glowered when she realized they were talking about her, but her curiosity kept her glued in place.

"Well…" Mr. Auberey hesitated. "I'm not presuming to know more about magic than you, but remember when she was bitten by that Lupin boy? Isn't the full moon in two days?"

Mrs. Auberey stopped dead. "But she wasn't bitten on the full moon," she said, her brow furrowed. "So she can't be a full werewolf…"

Liz's eyes widened. Of course! Remus always got headaches and whatnot the week or so before the full moon. But, like her mum said, she shouldn't be a full werewolf, so maybe she was just experiencing the symptoms? Liz felt another flash of pain behind her eyes and grimaced. If this was what Remus had to deal with, it was no wonder he was grouchy before the full moon. She snuck away and lay on the couch, a pillow over her eyes.

This sucked.

"Ban-ban-banish the banshee in your sooooooul! Oooh waaah!" Chris sang off-key. Liz was sorely tempted to smack him.

"SHUT UP!" she roared. She could hear her parents come out of their bedroom.

"No yelling in the house," her mother scolded. She looked at her daughter lying on the couch. "Do you have a headache?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," Liz groaned.

"Do you need a potion?"

"…Yes, please."

* * *

Remus groaned and put his head in his hands. He felt ill, like he needed to throw up. His mother rubbed his back comfortingly. "Do you need me to get you anything?" she asked.

"No, I just need to take a nap," he muttered.

"All right, sweetie. Call me if you need anything."

"Okay, mum." Remus lay back and closed his eyes. He'd just gotten a letter from James, saying he was now ungrounded and was allowed to have his friends over, and when was the next full moon so Remus could come over too, because he had some very important news to share with them? Remus' mother had sent back a reply saying that as long as Remus was up to it, he could come over in four days.

Remus was looking forward to seeing his friends again, especially Liz. He wondered now how she was doing, if she was feeling the effects of the moon as well. They'd written back and forth a few times, Liz complaining about her three-week book ban, Remus facing his with a certain amount of equanimity. They got into trouble, knowing the consequences, and were now paying the price. Remus had had his books taken away as well, something that James and Sirius found extremely funny. James had been denied going to watch the Tornadoes play the Wimbourne Wasps, which he was extremely upset about, especially after hearing about a game full of nearly sixty different fouls and a score of two-seventy to one-sixty, with the Tornadoes winning by a landslide. Sirius was locked in his room and Peter was just forbidden from going outside the house,and wasn't allowed any dessert either, and both of them thought they'd gotten the worse deal. Remus privately thought he'd rather have Peter's punishment than Sirius'- at least he would have been allowed to visit the house and stretch his legs a bit.

**xxx**

The full moon that month actually wan't too bad- Remus received only a few scratches on his arms and legs, and that was about it. So it was with a spring in his step that he packed his bag for James' house, where the Marauders would be spending the month of August and would go together to Kings' Cross station on September first. Remus would go home for several days when the August full moon came, then head back over to James' place.

When the day came for him to go, Remus pulled his shabby coat on, then grabbed his bag in one hand and his mother's wrist in the other. She twisted away from him and he felt the uncomfortable suffocation sensation that accompanied apparition, then the next thing he knew, he was standing in front of James' house.

Remus gaped at it. James didn't have a house- he had a manor, large, white and pristine, with a perfectly manicured lawn and beautifully trimmed hedges to look like dragons and unicorns, hippogriffs and manticores, and all sorts of magical creatures. Remus could see several horses grazing in a field, and there was a lake on the edge of a sprawling wood, complete with a dock and several canoes and kayaks bobbing peacefully in the water. Compared to Remus' house, this place was almost as grand as Hogwarts itself. No wonder James had enough space for everyone to have their own rooms.

"Moony!" James yelled, running past a fountain of a centaur and catching him up in a hug. "We've been waiting for ages! Everyone's already here! Sirius bonked his head falling out of the fireplace, he's got this huge lump on his forehead, and Peter keeps trying to steal the brownies, and Ebony fell asleep in the middle of the kitchen- Merlin, what happened to you?"

"Full moon, remember?" Remus yawned. He knew he must look like hell- he had dark circles under his still-yellow eyes and he hadn't bothered to brush his hair in almost a week.

"Oh, right," James said awkwardly. "Well, maybe that's why Liz is so tired- she said she only wanted to tell the story once- but yeah, maybe it was because of that." He grabbed Remus' bag and began hauling it into the house. "I have some really cool news to tell you guys also! Come on!"

"Let me say good-bye first," Remus laughed. Mrs. Lupin hugged him.

"I'll see you in a month," she said into his hair. "I love you, and don't forget to brush your teeth."

"I won't, mum! Love you too," Remus said. Mrs. Lupin stood, twisted on her heel, and with a _pop_, she was gone.

"So what was it you wanted to tell me?" Remus asked as James led him into a magnificent hallway with gleaming mahogany floors and ugly vases that looked to be very expensive.

James glanced around and lowered his voice. "Later. My bedroom."

"What-"

"_Not now_," James hissed as they went into a (surprise) pristine kitchen. Sirius was sitting at the counter with a bag of ice on his head. Peter was next to him, a plate of brownies steadily disappearing into his mouth. Liz lay snoring in the middle of the floor, her head pillowed on her arms. Remus winced when he saw her. Her sweatshirt sleeve had gotten pushed up to show the bite mark-his bite mark- had flared ann angry red color. There were dark circles under her eyes to rival his and she hadn't brushed her hair either.

"Are her eyes yellow too?" Remus asked as a house-elf appeared to take his bag.

"Mm-hmm," Peter mumbled through a mouthful of pastry. Remus sighed.

Liz stirred and opened her- yes, they were yellow- eyes. "Oh. Hi Re-Re-Remus," she yawned. She stretched and climbed stiffly to her feet. "When did you get here?"

"About two seconds ago," Remus replied. "Liz, please tell me that you didn't actually… y'know?"

She shook her head. "Later."

It was then that Mrs. Potter, who Sirius had told Remus in one of his letters was actually his great-aunt twice removed or something like that, came into the kitchen. "Hello," she said, smiling fondly at Remus. "You must be Remus? James has told us so much about you."

"I am. It's nice to meet you," Remus said politely, extending his hand. Mrs. Potter hesitated for a moment, then took it, much to Remus' surprise.

"It's nice to meet you too," she said. "James, why don't you show your friends to their rooms?"

"Sure, mum." James ran to the doorway and waved at them. "Come on, you guys! We don't have all day!"

"Only all month," Sirius muttered, but he set his ice down and followed his friend. The rest of the Marauders hurried after them, Remus and Liz lagging a bit.

They climbed up a flight of sweeping stairs and went down a hallway covered in a plush cream carpet. Remus just couldn't get over how _huge_ it all was. Finally, James stopped outside a door. "This is my room," he said, pushing the door open. The inside was painted a pale blue color- for the Tornadoes, Remus realized. Posters of the aforementioned Quidditch team plastered every available inch of the walls, and a mobile of the players and balls hung over James' bed.

The ceiling was painted to look like a blue sky filled with puffy white clouds- perfect Quidditch conditions. Matching furniture and bookcases were all pushed against one wall, to make more room for the posters. There was a set of French doors in on wall that led onto a terrace that overlooked the Potters' private Quidditch pitch. Looking along the outside wall, Remus could see a line of terraces going to the end of the manor.

"Those will be your guys' rooms," James said. "Since we don't ever use them, mum said you can decorate them however you want."

Remus felt faint. James' bedroom could have easily fit his living room back at home, and the terrace alone was the size of Remus' own bedroom. He picked self-consciously at his frayed jacket sleeves. Sirius seemed to be perfectly at ease in James' huge house, Peter was gaping at everything in awe, and Liz looked excited at the prospect of decorating her own room. Only he was uncomfortable.

James caught his eye and shrugged apologetically.

"So, do we pick out our rooms now, or do we talk first?" Sirius asked.

"Rooms first!" Peter and Liz said enthusiastically.

"Sounds good to me," Remus said quickly when the others looked at him.

Sirius claimed the bedroom next to James'. "How do you decorate it?" he asked, looking at the empty room.

"Oh! Right!" James said. "Lulee!" There was a _crack_ and a house-elf wearing a tea towel dress appeared.

"Yes, Master James?" she asked.

"Sirius here needs his room decorated. Do what he says," James ordered. The elf turned to the boys expectantly.

"I'm Sirius," Sirius said, stepping forward. "All right, here's what I'd like…"

Sirius had the elf paint his room scarlet, with a bright yellow carpet. On the ceiling went an enormous Gryffindor lion chewing up a Slytherin serpent. He got a four-poster bed with crimson hangings, a chest of drawers and a desk to match, and, for some strange reason, posters of muggle motorcycles, of all things.

"Motorbikes?" Remus asked as Lulee conjured the last poster with a snap of her fingers.

Sirius shrugged. "What? They're cool. Plus, it annoys mum." Liz and James snorted.

Liz chose the next room over. Her walls were painted to look like a forest, with a leafy green ceiling covered in ivy. Her bed was up near the ceiling, supported by birch tree poles. The only way to get up was a ladder carved into one of the supports. More ivy grew around the doors and climbed up the furniture, which looked like it had been carved straight from living trees. Her carpet looked like grass had sprouted on the floor.

Remus got the next room. He opted to leave the walls their plain beige color, but got a simple bed with a royal blue quilt and bookcases covering every inch of the walls. Several squashy armchairs cluttered the room, perfect for reading. The carpet was thick and soft, the same blue color as his quilt. He couldn't have been happier with it.

Peter's room became a sunny yellow color, with a set of bunk beds and a sofa, in more shades of yellow. He also got several posters of the Weird Sisters scattered about the room. The carpet was stitched with a giant sun pattern.

"I didn't realize you liked the sun so much," James said after he dismissed Lulee.

Peter shrugged. "I like bright things. They make me feel cheerful."

"So, can I tell you my news now?" James asked, bouncing excitedly on his heels like Sirius often did.

"Yeah, go on," Sirius said. He sat on Peter's new sofa and the others all piled on next to him.

"I figured out how to help Remus with his furry little problem," James said.

There was silence.

Finally, Peter shifted his weight. "James… You do realize that there's…no cure for being a werewolf…" He shot an apologetic look at Remus. "Sorry."

Remus shrugged. He was more curious to hear what James had come up with. "So, what is it?"

James took a deep breath, clearly enjoying keeping them hanging. "We become Animagi."

* * *

James thought it was the most brilliant idea in the world. He was the best Transfiguration student in their year- he hadn't passed with a hundred and ten percent in his finals for nothing- so how hard could it be? Sure, only really advanced wizards were able to accomplish it, but they were the Marauders! They could do anything!

He'd come across the book in his parents' library several days ago. There couldn't have been a more perfect solution. Werewolves' bites only affected humans, not animals. So, although the wounds would be cursed and would have to heal normally, they wouldn't be infected if Remus were to bite one of them. James sat on the sofa, a huge grin on his face, waiting for Remus to thank him. There was nothing else he could do.

Nothing besides jump up and start yelling.

"ARE YOU MENTAL?" he bellowed. "ANIM-" James leapt up and slapped a hand over Remus' mouth. It would not be good if his parents were to discover his plan. Not good at all.

"Shut up, you git! Do you want us to get chucked into Azkaban?" Sirius demanded. "I think it's a brilliant idea!"

"Not just brilliant-" Liz said, her face shining with excitement. "It's- wow, I can't think of a word awesome enough to describe it!"

Remus was glaring at them with so much anger in his eyes that James almost took a step back. For a moment, he could have sworn that he saw the shadow of a wolf pass over Remus' face.

James slowly removed his hand from Remus' mouth. "Are you going to start shouting at us again?" he asked. Remus blinked.

"How could you consider doing something so _stupid_?" he hissed. "Animagi? You could seriously hurt yourselves, or even die!"

"We'd be doing it for you, though," Liz said. "Think about it- a werwolf is only a danger to humans. As animals, we'd be perfectly safe!"

"Safe from getting infected, maybe," Remus said, "Not from getting ripped to shreds."

"Well, with any luck, we'll transform into animals big enough to keep you from doing that," Sirius said. "We said we would help and we will! Remus, it's perfect! Just think about it!"

"I can't let you put yourselves in such danger for me!" Remus cried.

"Remus," James said, "I'm sorry, but nothing you say can keep us from doing this. We've already made up our minds. Right, guys?" he looked over his shoulder at them and was pleased to see that all of them, even Peter, who had kept quiet through this, all nodded enthusiastically.

"We're doing it to keep you from hurting yourself, Remus," James said. "Even if we don't master it by the time we're out of school, we'll keep working at it and spend every full moon after keeping you company."

James could see Remus caving. "Just-" he took a deep breath. "Just please, be careful."

"Come on, Moony! When have we ever not been careful?" Liz asked. Remus took a breath. "Don't answer that. But we will this time! We might goof off in class-"

"What do you mean, we?" Sirius asked. "You're always being a good student, taking notes with Moony."

Liz rolled her eyes. James took the opportunity to add his two cents. "For something this serious, we will be as careful as we can."

"When will you guys start?" Remus asked.

"Right now," Peter said, surprising everybody. "That is, if you have the book?" James nodded.

"Come on, I have it in my room. Mum and dad will never know it's gone," he said. This was going to be the coolest thing ever!

* * *

Liz followed the boys into James' room, just as excited as the rest. She couldn't stop thinking about what her form would be. Maybe it would be a wolf, or a panther! An eagle would be cool, too. She sighed at the thought of flying without a broomstick. That sounded awesome! She frowned, having a sudden thought- what if she was a rat? Or, Merlin forbid, a platypus? Neither would be very much help against a werewolf.

James pried a loose floorboard up from under his bed and extracted a nearly brand-new copy of_ The Animagi: The Process of Finding your Inner Self and Giving it a Physical Form._

"That is the cheesiest title I have ever seen for a book," Liz said, staring at it. The cover depicted a wizard morphing into a bear and back.

"Cheesy it may be, but everything we'll need is right here," James said, tapping the book affectionately. "Mum was considering becoming an Animagus at one point, but never even opened this thing."

"Lucky for us," Sirius said, taking the book from James. He began to flip through it. "This is just a bunch of stuff about laws and whatnot!" he cried.

"That's just the first chapter," James said. "And all through the book, it keeps saying stuff like, 'Register with your Ministry', 'check your local laws', stuff like that."

Liz yawned. "Bor-ing. So what else is in there?"

James turned red. "It's actually a lot to do with soul-searching. You have to know yourself so well that you can literally become what you are on the inside."

Sirius let out a barklike laugh. "This should be interesting."

"I think we should start with this first bit- list all your good qualities," James said. "Who wants to start?"

Now that they were actually going to do this, the reality began to sink in for the first time and suddenly, nobody was willing to make the first move. After a pregnant pause, Sirius said, "I'll go first." He cleared his throat. "I'm loyal, and… well, this is weird…"

"Keep going," Liz said. "No holds barred, no secrets. We're the Marauders! We can tell each other anything without looking like prats. Right guys?" she added, looking around the circle of her friends.

"Right," they said uncomfortably.

"If you want...I can do this with you guys," Remus said. "I cant become an Animagus myself, but I'll help you as much as I can." He blushed.

"Thanks, Moony," Sirius said. "Okay, let's see… Loyal, fearless, smart, fun-loving, and I have killer instincts."

"Since when do you have killer instincts?" James asked. Sirius swatted him.

"Prat."

"Okay, your turn, Pete," James said, rubbing his arm and glaring at Sirius.

Peter took a deep breath. "Funny, resourceful, adaptable- er, I'm a good liar, though I don't know if that would be a good or a bad trait…"

"If you're a Marauder, it's a good thing," James said firmly. "Ebony! Go!"

Liz thought about it. What were her good qualities? "I'm really protective of my friends," she said, thinking of the time she defended Remus against her mother in Dumbledore's office. "I'm really sneaky. Erm, I'm territorial?"

"How do you figure?" James asked.

"If Chris goes into my room, I all but murder him." everyone laughed. "I like high places, but that's not really a quality…" This was turning out to be harder than she thought.

"You're a quick thinker," Remus offered. Liz grinned at him. "James?" Remus asked.

James pulled his glasses off and wiped them on his shirt. "I'm also protective of my friends. I'm the most brilliant person in the room."

"And the most modest," Sirius added. They snorted.

"You're determined," Liz said. "Maybe you'll turn into a goat."

"I hope not!" James and Remus cried together. They looked at one another with some surprise. "Okay, that was weird," they said. "Hey!"

By then, everyone was in hysterics. "And McGonagall can be the troll under the bridge," Liz choked out. "'Who dares to cross my bridge?' 'It is I, the smallest and scrawniest billygoat who wears ugly specs'…" she looked at the blank faces. "Anyone?"

"Was that supposed to be funny?" Sirius asked, eyeing her.

"Oh, shut up, mutt."

"Mutt?"

"You know, Sirius, the Dog Star, mutt… ah, forget it." Liz turned to Remus. The Marauders looked at him expectantly.

"Ah, I'm smart?" Remus said.

"Are you asking us or telling us?" Peter asked.

"I'm smart. I'm, erm…" Remus seemed at a loss for what to say. Liz felt sorry for him. He'd grown up putting himself down because he believed himself to be a monster.

"You're very gentle," she said.

"You're kind," James supplied.

"Witty," Sirius added.

"Brave," Peter said. Remus smiled at them.

"So, what's next?" Liz asked, eying the book with a feeling that she knew what was coming.

"List your worst qualities…" James said. "Why do I get the feeling this is going to be harder than the best qualities?"

"Maybe if we each just picked the one that we thought was _the_ worst, that would get it over with faster," Peter suggested.

"Sounds good," James said, glancing at the others.

Liz thought about it again. Her worst quality… What was her worst quality? She had a short temper when it came to people messing with her stuff, but she didn't think that was it. Her mind drifted to the time she had been a jerk to Snape in the library- when she walked up to him and began bullying him for her usual table. As she thought about it, her face grew hot with shame. She could have easily told the others what their worst qualities were, but herself? This was so hard…

_But you're doing it for Remus_, a voice in her head said. She glanced over at him and was startled to see a tear trickle down his cheek. She gritted her teeth.

"I always have to finish what I start," she said quietly. Everyone looked at her.

"How is that bad?" James asked.

"Whenever we'd hex Snivellus, I always had a hard time leaving him alone. Keeping my distance was easy enough, but once we get into a fight? I have to go all the way." Everyone was quiet.

After a long silence, Sirius said, "I'm reckless. I'm the one who gets us into trouble without thinking of the consequences of my actions." he broke off, then continued. "I'm the one who instigates most of our fights with Snivellus…"

"I'm a coward," Peter whispered.

"But the Sorting Hat put you in Gryffindor! There's no way it could be wrong!" James protested. Peter shook his head.

"I always let you guys fight my own battles. I'm a coward, you can't deny it."

Remus sighed. "I never have enough confidence in myself," he said. Nobody could argue with that.

They looked expectantly at James, who looked thoughtful. "I suppose… if somebody were to be in trouble, I'd-" he swallowed. "I'd sacrifice the world to save that person. even if I hated them."

They were all quiet. Liz almost wished they never thought to try this.

Almost.

But they were doing it for Remus, and because of that, they couldn't turn back. Although he wouldn't admit it, he needed them, and the Marauders never turned their backs on a fellow Marauder.

After a while, James shook himself and said, "So, Eb, are you going to tell us what happened on the full moon?"

Three eager, one apprehensive, faces looked at her. Liz ceased her throat a few times. "Well, you all know how Moony gets all grumpy the week before?"

"Oh, no," Sirius groaned.

"Oh, yes," Liz said, grimacing. "Like you would not believe. And I got these awful migraines. The night of, I felt ill the whole time, I didn't get a wink of sleep." She yawned. "I'm still exhausted." Remus grimaced, looking like he was about to say something, but Sirius interrupted him.

"Plenty of nappytime for tonight, Sleeping Beauty," Sirius said. Liz stuck her tongue out at him and ruffled up her hair to make it look bad, forgetting that it wasn't as short as it had been the year before. _Damn, I'll never get the snarls out,_ she thought angrily.

"Brilliant," James snorted as he watched her rake her fingers through her hair in frustration. He reached up with his own hand and ruffled his hair, making it look like he'd just gotten off a broomstick.

"Prat," she muttered. Her mum was insisting that she needed to grow her hair out, because she wasn't going to stay eleven forever. Liz found this to be a ridiculous sentiment. After all, plenty of girls wore their hair short and it looked fine on them! But nooo, her mum was being frustrating, as usual.

"James?" The Marauders' heads snapped up as they heard James' mother's voice in the hall. James snatched the Animagus book and threw himself udder his bed. He wrenched the floorboard up and hid the book, then shoved it back down and leapt onto the couch just as his mother opened the door. "What are you all dong up here?" Mrs. Potter asked, looking at their guilty faces.

"Nothing," they chorused.

"Well, I wanted to let you know that diner will be in about two hours. Jamesie, do you want to show your guests the stables or the docks?"

"Er, sure thing, mum!" James said cheerily. "Come on, we can go riding before dinner!"

They jumped up and hurried past Mrs. Potter, unconsciously raising the shoulder nearest to her as they passed.

"So, stables?" Liz said as they trooped down the stairs, down the hallway, and out into the back garden. _Garden_ may not have been the proper term, though- the place was _huge_.

"Yeah," James said, pushing open a gate and leading them to a low white barn. "We have ten horses- Mine's Godric, none of you can ride him. Hey, Remus? You want to ride Beowulf?"

"Ha ha, I don't think," Remus said, rolling his eyes. "Seriously, it's not funny."

"Sorry," James said. He lifted the latch and pushed the door open. The smell of a barn, a mixture of sweet hay, smelly manure, and leather tack met their noses. James went over to a stall where a bay gelding poked its head out to meet them. "Hey, Godric," James said, stroking its nose. "Did you miss me?" The horse snorted and turned around. "Guess not, then."

James helped them saddle their horses, then they rode outside into the woods. Peter had been rather hesitant to mount his horse, Deparnieux, until James taunted him about being a scaredy-cat. Peter had gotten on after that, though Liz noticed he kept shifting his weight, glancing around nervously. She patted her own horse, a shaggy grey beast named Abelard, grinning. She'd never ridden before, but it was definitely much better than a broomstick, in her opinion.

"By the way, Ebony, I'll have to teach you and Peter how to fly while you're here," James said, killing her happiness.

"What?" Peter said. "Why?"

"Because! That's why! Plus, I'll be trying out for the Quidditch team this year! I need your help to practice!"

"Can't it wait for a little bit?" Liz demanded. "If I try to fly now, I'll fall off my broom, I'm so tired!"

Remus yawned, enhancing her words. "You're the one to talk."

They rode through the woods, following a well-established trail, James pointing out his favorite places to play Auror. "We should have a picnic out here sometime," he said as the Marauders passed a small clearing carpeted in moss. He glanced at his new watch. "Oh! We need to get back soon!"

"Already?" Sirius asked as his horse snorted. "But it's only been a few hours!"

"That's the point, you idiot," Liz said. Her stomach growled. "Besides, aren't you hungry?"

Sirius thought about it. Stay outside, or go eat? "Good point," he said. "I'd say race you, but I'm scared of falling off this thing!"

"We'll have to work on your equestrian skills as well, then," James said. "Hey, are you going to help me teach Ebony and Peter how to fly?"

Sirius grinned. "I wouldn't miss that for a million galleons!" He smirked at Liz.

Peter and Liz exchanged looks. "We are so dead," Peter said.

* * *

**A/N: Bwahaha, I LIED! The chapter came out early because I was wasting my time doing nothing productive, and stole the laptop to finish this. You're welcome. (It was either this or the 2,000,000th game of Life with my brother. Can you blame me for choosing this?)**

**You CAN expect chapter two up Tuesday, though. Or something. I do know for certain that you will get a chapter then, so keep your eyes peeled!**

**I'd like to give a shoutout to TwinsOfNeptune, because their story is coming along epically and all Percy Jackson fans should go read it right now. Go! What are you waiting for? Or I will set Mrs. O'Leary on you!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	2. Lord Voldewhatsits

**A/N: ...I can honestly say: I'm stunned. I never expected so much from you guys. 154 reviews for part one, and 15 reviews for just one chapter of part two? Totally awesome! "Do you have a rocket ship, Potter?"**

**I only just realized that in chapter three of part one, I mentioned that Andromeda wasn't in Slytherin- I was wrong. So so very very wrong. I am sorry. I take it back now. She was a Slytherin. I'm not going to repost it now, though. I'm too lazy for that.**

**This chapter is dedicated to theblonde2243, for being the first person to review this story. By the way, if you're into those 'Hogwarts reads the books' stories, go and read hers- it is edited by yours truly, and I highly recommend it.**

**Rewatching Prisoner of Azkaban, I saw they spelled Moony as Mooney and I just about had an aneurism. Why? Why would they do that for a JOKE? NOT FUNNY, PEOPLE! GAAAAHHHHH! Foofooman3 and I were timing all the useless parts and are so far up to 20 minutes that could have been spent on the Three Broomsticks scene and the Marauders' backstory-and we're only at the part where Hermione walks out! _**

**Bleh, spelling errors in chapter one? My bad. I never reread these until after I post, so… *shrugs* Sorry about that. I was stuck in a car while writing that and had very little sleep the night before, and I only just realized that it kind of jumps around and whatnot, probably a lot like this chapter... Oops.**

**My apologies to JKR in my NB in part one- the doc manager deleted the S at the beginning of She and changed it to he, as JoeSax was kind enough to point out. Oops again.**

**Disclaimer: Meh.**

The days at the Potters' house passed in a similar fashion to the first. The Marauders would rise early, spend the morning working on their Animagus transformation project, then devote their afternoons to the outdoors. Peter quickly overcame his fear of Deparnieux, though he still refused to let him eat out of his hand. Liz taught Remus how to paddle a canoe, and they, and Sirius and James, would often race each other around the lake. The winners got to push the losers in. Peter would usually watch these races, but joined them eagerly when they pulled their bathing suits on for swim.

Whenever the Marauders would swim, however, Remus would just sit on the dock and read. They often asked him to join them, but he always refused. Liz was confused by this until James reminded them (out of Remus' earshot) that he probably didn't want to show off his scars any more than he had to. That also explained why he never took his jacket off, either, but Liz wished he'd realize they didn't care.

Mrs. Potter would usually leave the children to their own business, preferring to do whatever it is that mothers do, while Mr. Potter became more busy than ever with his work as an Auror. One night at dinner, the Marauders could have sworn they were exchanging worried looks when they thought the kids weren't looking, but, as Remus pointed out, it was none of their business. If the Potters wanted to tell them, the would in their own time. They never did say what was worrying them, but the children were soon forbidden from going into the woods alone. This never stopped them, although Remus would follow them with great reluctance when they would go to play Auror, hissing warnings which they ignored.

James was true to his word, and he and Sirius would drag Liz and Peter down to the Quidditch pitch every evening after dinner to work on their flying skills. Remus would go with them, but he'd just sit on the ground and read while Peter repeatedly fell off. After a week or so, however, Liz was able to keep the broom from wobbling whenever she would change elevation, something she was quite proud of. After a while, James retrieved his Quaffle from the shed to teach her how to block the ball.

"But James!" she protested. "You know I can still barely keep the broom straight! How do you expect me to play keeper for you?"

James shrugged. "Well, Sirius is too busy working on his Beating skills, and I need someone to Keep for me since dad's been too busy with work to help."

Liz scowled. "I'll fall off!"

"No you won't," James laughed. "I'll teach you, don't worry!"

Remus frowned. "I don't think you should force her to play if she does't want to…" Liz shot him a grateful look.

"Oh, don't be such a Flobberworm, Moony," James said. "She'll be brilliant once she gets the hang of it!"

"Bet she won't," Sirius taunted as he and Peter landed next to them. "She's too scared to even look at the broom, much less ride it!"

That did it. Liz swung her leg over her borrowed broom and kicked off. Her stomach was left somewhere back on the ground with the boys as she accelerated towards the hoops at one end. Her hands slipped slightly for one heart-stopping moment as she brought the broom around to face James.

"Are you coming or what, four-eyes?" she yelled. James tucked the Quaffle under his arm and flew up to meet her with infuriating ease.

"Looks like we found out how to manipulate you," he said, grinning. Liz glowered at him.

"Make it quick, I don't think I can stand being up here much longer," she said.

"All right," James said. "The first thing I'm going to show you is the basic one-handed block…"

After James finished showing her how to hold on with one hand and lunge out with the other to knock the ball out of the way, he flew a ways away. "I'm going to try and score and I want you to block it," he called. Without warning, his arm came forward and the Quaffle was hurtling though the air. Liz lashed out, but missed by about a foot. The Quaffle flew through the hoop, then slowly began to fall through the air. Liz dove after it, her face red.

"Come on, Eb, you got this!" Sirius yelled from below. Liz caught the Quaffle and tossed it back at James.

"That was good, but you need to remember to move your broom as well," James said as he caught it. "Let's try again."

Liz sighed, but did as he asked. She knew how badly James wanted to get the open spot for Chaser this year and didn't want to let him down. So she tried. And tried. Liz was about to say 'stuff it' when, much to her amazement, she was able to knock the ball out of the way.

"Way to go, Ebony!" James yelled. Sirius and Peter whooped in appreciation from their end of the Quidditch pitch. Liz looked hopefully at Remus, but her elation at having done something right was watered down significantly when she realized he was still engrossed in his book.

"Can we go in now?" she asked James after she'd passed the Quaffle back to him. "I'm done for the day."

James followed her gaze to Remus. "Ah. Sure, if that's what you want."

They landed next to the still-oblivious Remus. "Hi, Moony," Liz said. "Whatcha readin'?"

Remus looked up. "Oh, hey! What was all the yelling about?"

"Eb blocked her very first goal just now," Sirius said proudly as he landed next to Liz. He grinned at her, and she smiled weakly back.

"Oh, really? That's nice," Remus said vaguely as he stood up. "Are we going in now?"

Liz sighed. "Yeah." Remus frowned at her.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"No," Liz said shortly. Remus looked at Sirius, who shrugged. Liz pushed past them to put her broom back in the shed, fuming. The one time, the _one bleeding time_ she managed to do something right and Remus didn't even see? "Stupid idiot, can't believe-" she muttered as she threw her broom in the shed, stripped off her Keeper's gloves and stomped back to her friends.

They headed across the grounds, their shadows stretched unnaturally long by the low sun, glancing around nervously as the animals of the night began to stir. A branch snapped in the nearby woods and they ran for it, not stopping until they reached the house. They practically flew in, Sirius slamming the door behind them and they collapsed, giggling at their antics.

"How much do you want to bet that was just a rabbit?" James laughed as they stood. He froze suddenly, holding a hand up. Liz stood still, wondering what he'd heard.

"What is it?" Peter breathed. James frowned.

"I can hear my parents- they just said something about murders…" The Marauders exchanged glances.

"Let's go," Sirius whispered, creeping in the direction of Mr. Potter's office. James waved violently to get his attention and held out the invisibility cloak. Sirius grinned sheepishly and ducked under it with the others and they tiptoed to the office door.

"-and I'm probably going to be late again tomorrow, Dorea, all the Death Eaters that have been popping up are giving us a hard time."

Liz frowned. What the heck was a Death Eater? She and the boys pressed their ears closer to the door, even Remus eager to hear what was going on.

Mrs. Potter sighed. "Charlus, I don't like it. The killings have been getting worse and if you try and interfere, we'll be next!"

The Marauders exchanged glances, mouths open. Killings?

"It's _because_ the killings have been getting worse that I need to do this, don't you understand? The Ministry hasn't been able to catch this Lord Voldemort yet, but it's only a matter of time. As long as they have all of us looking, we'll get it sorted out before you know it." Liz frowned. Volde- voldewhatsits? Where had she head that name before? There were some footsteps, then Mrs. Potter spoke once more.

"Fine, but until you do manage to catch them, I don't want the kids out after dark, and certainly not in the woods. But don't tell them, they'll be scared out of their minds if they knew-"

Liz snorted and Mrs. Potter fell silent. "Let's get out of here," James whispered as they began to back away from the door. They made it back to the door when they pulled the cloak off, a split second before James' mother walked out of the study.

"Oh, there you are," she said, looking relieved. "I was so worried!"

"Mum, we were just out on the Quidditch pitch," James said. He realized he was still wearing his gloves and pulled them off, holding them up for his mother's inspection. "See? Liz blocked her first goal today!"

Mrs. Potter smiled briefly. "Yes, that's wonderful, dear. Could you come to the study once you've gotten into your pajamas and your teeth brushed?" The Marauders exchanged looks.

"Sure thing, mum!" James said as they hurried to the stairs. Once they were in his room, he shut the door and they looked at one another.

"Does this mean you'll listen to me now?" Remus asked, folding his arms. "That's why your parents didn't want us out in the woods! Because there's some crazy killer on the loose!"

"What are the odds he'll come after us, though?" James asked. "Although it certainly explains why they're so worried, I don't see why we can't keep playing in there!"

Remus' lip trembled, his fists clenched at his sides. "Don't you get what I'm saying?" he asked, his voice tight. "The last time I disobeyed my parent's rules and went into the woods, I was _bitten_! You could end up _dead_!"

James seemed taken aback. "Well…"

Liz frowned. "I dunno, James, I think we should listen to Remus this time. He has a point."

Sirius walked over to James to stand next to him. "Well, it's like James said, why would Voldemort want to come after us? I think we're fine."

"Well, I think we should-" Peter began.

"Shut it, Pete," Sirius said. "I'm not done- didn't anyone ever tell you it's rude to interrupt? Anyway, we've been running around in these woods for a week now and nothing's happened yet-"

"Yet," Remus said. Sirius glowered at him.

"Why should we stop now?" Sirius asked, folding his arms.

"Oh, I don't know- because I want to live long enough to graduate Hogwarts?" Remus snapped. "It's hard enough to do that once a month!" He shut his mouth with an audible clop and flushed. "I'm going to go get ready," he mumbled. He turned on his heel and walked stiffly out of the room.

"Remus!" Liz yelled. She glowered at the boys. "This is your fault!"

"How is it our fault?" James demanded. "Blame Sirius, he's the one that started it!"

"No it's not!" Sirius cried. "Remus started it!"

"I'm going to go talk to him," Liz said, walking to the open door. She turned back, hoping for some help from James, or maybe Peter, but James just raised his hands in an apologetic gesture. She huffed and ran down the hall to Remus' bedroom. "Moony?" she asked, knocking on the door. "Can I come in?"

There was a pause, then came his hesitant reply. Liz pushed open the door and quickly looked away- Remus wasn't wearing his shirt. It really was as bad as James had said, with thick white scars covering Remus' upper body and arms. A thick white bandage was wrapped around one forearm, a memento from the last full moon. She couldn't keep her eyes from flickering back to his shoulder, where the massive bite inscribed a semicircle on his shoulder and chest. She realized that Remus was lucky to have full use of his arm.

"It's alright, you can look," Remus said, embarrassed. "You would have seen sooner or later, since I was getting kind of tired sitting out while you guys would swim." He fiddled with his shirt as she looked at his scars briefly, then raised her eyes to meet his. He grimaced. "Ah, I- erm…"

"Remus," Liz said gently, "It doesn't matter, alright? I don't know why you thought we'd make fun, I mean, we know it's no walk in the park. Being a werewolf."

He flinched. "I don't know how you can say it so calmly," he said. He gave a bitter laugh. "What am I saying? Why am I not questioning how you're not running screaming from the room right now…"

Liz scowled at him. "You start that again and I'll hex you so hard your _grandchildren_ will feel it," she threatened, pulling her wand out of her pocket. "You know we don't give a crap that you're a werewolf, so you should start acting like it! For the love of Merlin's baggy underpants!"

Remus sighed. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, running a hand through his shaggy hair. "It's still so weird, having people other than my mum care-" he broke off and turned away. Liz hesitated, then stuffed her wand back in her pocket, sat on the bed next to him and put her arm around his shoulders.

"We care, Remus," she said quietly. "That's not going to change, we don't care if you're a werewolf or a flobberworm, because you're a person who cares about others. Your heart is the biggest out of all of us, and if I had to guess at what your Animagus form would be, I'd say a lion." Liz grinned at him. "Wow, that sounded like a cheesy line somebody would say in a book, didn't it?"

"Pretty much," Remus laughed. "I still think James is wrong, though," he added, suddenly serious again.

"Well, maybe when his mum talks to us, he'll change his mind," Liz said.

They both jumped when they heard a cough from the door. They spun around to see Sirius, clad in his pajamas, standing in the doorway. His expression was unreadable. "Everyone's ready," he said. "Are you coming or do I need to give you a few more minutes?"

"You don't need to be so snide," Liz said, quickly letting go of Remus. "I'll be ready in a bit." Sirius gave her an odd look as she shut the door behind her. "What?" she asked, frowning at him.

"What were you guys doing in there?" Sirius asked, a crease between his eyes.

"Hmm, let me think about that- Trying to calm him down after you had to go and be a prat to him! Do you never think about anyone other than yourself? Remus is being a stickler for the rules because of what happened the last time he didn't listen! You have no idea what that bite did to him- is _still_ doing to him! He's been living a nightmare and nobody cares because they can't see what's right in front of their fat faces! He's just looking out for you and you brush his problems to the side like they're nothing! I can't pretend to know what he's going through, but I have a pretty good idea- it sucks! And why the bloody hell do you care, anyway?" Liz planted her hands on her hips and glared up at Sirius. When did he grow five inches, anyway?

Sirius licked his lips nervously. "Ah…"

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Liz walked past him and slammed her door shut without waiting for his answer.

xxxxxxxxxx

"You do realize we wouldn't be asking this of you if it were't serious, don't you?" James' mother looked at each one of them in turn. James sighed in frustration.

"If it's so serious, why won't you tell us what's going on?" He asked, sticking his chin out stubbornly. Yes, he knew why, but he wanted to hear it for himself.

"We'll tell you when you need to know," his mother said. James sighed. Didn't parents realize kids could handle more than they gave them credit for? Nope, because if they did, they wouldn't be having this conversation right now!

"Fine," James said, surreptitiously crossing his fingers behind his back. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted brief movement as Sirius and Liz mimicked him. He let out a huge (fake) yawn. "Could we please go now? We're tired."

His mother smiled at him. "Of course, sweetie. Sweet dreams." She kissed him on the cheek and sent them off. As soon as they were out of her sight, James wiped it off with the back of his hand. Sirius snickered.

"Shut up," James growled.

"Is mummy going to tuck you in bed, Jamsie sweetie?" Sirius mocked.

"Shut. Up."

Instead of going to their respective rooms, the Marauders retreated to James' where they sat on the rug in a circle. "Now what?" Peter asked.

"Now, we either find ways to entertain ourselves inside, or we sneak out when mum is busy," James said. "You know what my parents are like, they'll never have the time of day to supervise us!" James pounded his fist on the floor. Liz sighed. She was actually kind of hoping to get in some more Quidditch practice the next evening.

"I guess we could always work some more on our Animagus transformations," she said dully.

"Actually, could we go to bed now? I really am tired," Peter said.

"Good night, then," Sirius said. None of them made any move to get up.

"Anyway," Remus said, "I really don't think it would be a good idea to sneak out. James, think about it!" Remus appealed to him, "Your dad is really high up in the Auror office! This Lord Voldemort will probably target the guys who are making life difficult for him, and by that logic, we're practically at the top of the list!" James rolled his eyes. It shouldn't come as a surprise to him that Remus was right, but that didn't mean he had to like it. He'd give it a few days, a week tops, before he could persuade Remus to sneak out.

They sat in silence for a moment, then Liz finally said, "I'm going to bed, I'm tired too." She stood and left. Remus and Peter left a moment later, leaving James and Sirius alone.

"Want to play a game of exploding snap before bed?" James asked.

In the end, the two boys fell asleep on the rug, only to be rudely awoken in the middle of the night when the reformed deck of cards blew up underneath them. After a storm of swearing that would have made a sailor blush, Sirius stumbled off to his bedroom and James crashed on his own bed.

The next morning, the Marauders ambled down to breakfast in their pajamas to find Mrs. Potter making pancakes (cooking was a favorite hobby of hers) and Mr. Potter reading the paper and nursing a cup of coffee, his brow furrowed. They sat at the table, yawning and bleary-eyed, as Mrs. Potter slid a platter of pancakes onto the table, waking them up more effectively than the exploding snap cards.

"Mmm, these are delicious, Mrs. Potter," Sirius said, smiling winningly at her.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," she said. "But thank you."

Mr. Potter grunted and refolded his paper to read the back. James looked up just in time to see Liz knock her mug over with a clatter, her face white as a sheet. He followed her gaze to see the headline picture, and swallowed hard.

Staring up at them from the front page was a black-and-white picture of something that looked like it was made out of stars- a grinning skull with a snake protruding from its mouth.

"It's that symbol," Liz whispered. "I know that…" she pulled her wand out and stared at it, then back at the picture. "It is…"

**A/N: Bwahahahaha! Ciffie! Mehe. I'm evil. Don't you love me? …Don't answer that.**

**Well, chapter two is done, now I need to go plan out the rest of this story, because it needs to have SOME semblance of plot to it. *sighs* I get the feeling this is going to turn into a drama very quickly if I don't figure something out. *facedesks***

**Aww, a little Liz/Remus bonding time, along with her usual threat of hexing! So sweet XD**

**I just went with Death Eaters because nothing was concrete on the Knights of Walpurgis name…so…pffft. Yup, Voldy is finally starting to make an appearance. Things are going to get darker as the years go on… *cue evil music***

**I NEED PRANK IDEAS- PLEASE HELP! Omelets to anyone who gives me an epic Halloween prank!**

**Wow, I can't believe how quickly school is approaching- I got my schedule for this year. *sigh* We're being swapped onto a year-round schedule D: but it would be kind of cool to go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in the winter, so :D**

***Clears throat* Hem, hem. Now, don't forget to review, or Ebony will hex you so hard your grandchildren will feel it!**

**Not really sure when chapter three will be up, but it will be on next Tuesday at the latest. I am already working on it, so don't worry!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	3. The First War Begins

**A/N: Blabitty blabitty blah.*****spins in a circle with arms outstretched* **

**I had to get my wisdom teeth taken out today. I'm miserable and my face hurts...I'm too young for this! (Siriusly, I'm barely fifteen! I shouldn't have to deal with this!) Sorry for the late (kinda sorta but not really) update, but a combination of laziness, writer's block, Minecraft, misery, a numb lip, chipmunk cheeks and cosplay practice made me procrastinate. I am a horrible person. *facedesks* Also, I discovered that it is REALLY HARD to eat liquid foods with a numb lower lip and not dribble all over yourself. How humiliating.**

**This chapter is dedicated to Lizaluvsdoggies, because I was seriously stuck for ideas and she was kind enough to help :) YOU'RE AWESOME! PANCAKE FIGHT! A little OOCness from Remus, but I think it fit. You'll see what I mean.**

**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah. I stole the title from HP:OotP, despite the fact that I do not own Harry Potter. I am not Harry Potter. I am not J.K. Rowling, so that brings me back to not owning. Which I don't. And won't. And haven't. I own the overall idea for this storyline, though. FOOLISH MORTALS!**

* * *

_When we last left our story, Liz recognized the symbol from her wand- the Dork, sorry, Dark Mark- as the picture on the front of the newspaper..._

* * *

The only sound in the room was the sizzle of frying bacon.

"Liz?" Sirius asked. "What is that? What are you talking about?"

"You recognize this?" Mr. Potter asked, his brow furrowed. "Where did you see it?"

Sirius looked at Liz. She kept looking from her wand to the photograph and back, eyeing both like they were poisonous spiders. She swallowed.

"I- My wand- the first time I held it, it spouted that skull-and-snake thing, but in green smoke." Sirius' eyebrows shot up. Although she'd told them about the ebony unicorn hair, she never mentioned this symbol.

"Really?" James' parents exchanged looks. Sirius just couldn't get used to the way James' parents never seemed to argue or anything. Heck, he'd been at his friend's house for a little over a week and he had yet to see Mrs. Potter raise her voice. It was unnatural. To him, at least. The others acted as though married couples like this were a normality- but then, what would he know?

"Would you mind telling us about your wand?" Mr. Potter asked, holding his hand out. "Let me think…You're James' age so you would have produced this symbol about a year ago?"

"Yeah," Liz said, handing it over. "What does that have to do with it?"

Mr. Potter turned Liz's wand over in his fingers. "Well, it was around that time that this symbol, this Dark Mark, as people have begun to call it, first appeared." He examined the wand, peering at it intently. "Wood and core?"

"Hickory and unicorn hair," Liz said. She glanced at Sirius, a question in her eyes. _Should I tell him?_

Sirius thought about it, then gave an almost imperceptible shake. _No_.

"Curious," Mr. Potter said softly. "And you haven't produced it any other times?"

"No," Liz said. Mr. Potter handed her wand back to her. After an uncomfortable pause, she hesitantly asked, "What happened to make the Dark Mark thingy appear?"

"It was a-" Mr. Potter was cut off by his wife.

"Absolutely not, Charlus! They're too young!"

"Did somebody die?" James asked bluntly through a mouthful of pancake. His mother's eyes narrowed.

"You've been eavesdropping, haven't you?" she asked, shooting Mr. Potter a glare. "Why did you have to give your son that cursed invisibility cloak?"

"He was old enough," Mr. Potter said simply. "And I think they're old enough to know now." He took his glasses off and polished them on his shirt. Mrs. Potter pursed her lips.

"Just... don't go into details," she said before turning away to the bacon, her back stiff and straight.

"So what happened?" Remus asked.

"A man, Jason McKinnon-"

"Wait- McKinnon?" Sirius asked. He recognized the name. "Is he Marlene's dad?" Marlene McKinnon was a Hufflepuff girl only a year above them.

"Think so," Peter said, his brow furrowed.

Mr. Potter nodded. "He was found dead in his home last night."

"That's... horrible," James said. Sirius frowned.

"Why would Voldemort want to kill him?" he asked. James kicked him under the table.

"You git, we aren't supposed to know that," he hissed.

Mr. Potter frowned at him. I'm not even going to ask..." he muttered, shaking his head. "Well, we aren't completely sure of what the self-dubbed 'Lord' Voldemort wants, aside from blood purity. His victims over the past year have been muggles, but the real reason this has come as such a shock was because Mr. McKinnon was a wizard."

"What was his blood status?" Sirius asked, a nasty feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Muggle-born," he answered, giving Sirius an odd look. "Why?"

Sirius took a deep breath. "My parents are pure-blood fanatics, sir. I've heard them talking about someone who's going to 'purify' the wizarding race, but I never really thought about it until now."

At his words, everybody's eyebrows shot up. "Have they ever mentioned him by name?" Mr. Potter asked.

"No sir, but they've talked about him," Sirius said.

"Hey dad, can we go? We didn't know any of this until today, and if we did, we'd tell you," James said, standing up. Mr. Potter looked like he was about to protest, but they were saved by James' mother.

"Run along, dear, and have fun. Stay inside!" After shooting her husband a death glare, she tried to peck James' cheek, but he dodged it and they ran back to James' room.

"What was that all about, Sirius?" James demanded once they'd shut the doors. "Your parents? What would they know?"

Sirius took a deep breath. He hadn't really wanted his friends to know how bad his parents were, exactly, but it looked like he'd have to fess up today. "My parents are pure-blood supremacists. They think anyone below pure-blood status is filth, and from what I've heard, they seem to think that Voldemort has the right idea about that sort of thing."

Remus flinched and Liz bit her lip. They looked nervously at each other, and Sirius, for a moment, wondered why. Then he remembered- Liz's mother was muggle-born, and her father a muggle. Wether or not she would be considered a half-blood remained to be seen. Remus was a half-blood, but he was also a werewolf. They weren't exactly what would be considered 'clean', if what he'd heard was to be believed.

"James broke the silence. "Mate, you should know by t=now that we don't judge people based on things they can't control. Like, Remus and his furry little problem. They're your parents, not you."

Sirius managed a grin at him. "Thanks. I wish the same could be said about my brother, though..." he sighed.

"His name's Randal?" Liz asked.

"Regulus," Sirius corrected. "He's like the 'perfect' son. He used to be a sweet kid before my parents got to him."

"Used to be?" Peter queried.

"Yeah, 'used' being the word in question. He's now just as bad as my parents, cousins- You know what Snivellus and his buddies are like? Take that and make them ten times worse."

James grimaced. "Oh, Sirius," he trailed off, looking awkward.

Sirius shook his head, trying to rid himself of the bad memories. "It's fine. We're not close anymore, I couldn't care less what they think." The words were a lie, and both he and his friends knew it. Liz looked like she wanted to say more, but Remus put his hand on her arm and she stilled.

Sirius stiffened. James and Peter may not notice it, but Remus liked Liz, and she returned the affection. What was it about he, Sirius, that Liz didn't like? What was it about Remus that was able to bring that special smile forth, but whenever he tried to make her laugh, it was the same one she'd give to James and Peter? James caught his eye in a silent question. Sirius mouthed 'later' and James nodded, frowning at him. Sirius grunted and turned away.

"Hey, Sirius?" Peter asked, interrupting his thoughts. "Can you show me how to hit a Bludger today? You did kind of promise...?"

Sirius suppressed the urge to snap at the chubby boy. It wasn't _his_ fault... "Sure, Pete," he said, climbing to his feet. "C'mon, James, let's go see if we can talk your dad into supervising us."

Sirius grabbed Peter's wrist and left without looking back.

"What if we can't?" Peter asked as he was pulled out the door. "And I thought Mr. Potter had to go to work today."

"Too bad," Sirius said. "We're going anyway."

* * *

Liz glowered at Sirius' retreating back. He was acting like Remus on a full moon week! Seriously, what was the deal with him? Er, pun not intended. She sighed and shook her head.

She and Remus sat in silence for a few minutes, listening to James' and Sirius' begging from below them. After a while, there was the sound of footsteps, then the sliding glass door opening, then silence. From downstairs, they could hear Mrs. Potter humming an indiscernible tune as she puttered around her bedroom.

"So," Remus said after a moment. "What do you want to do?"

Liz grunted and lay back on the carpet, watching James' mobile spin overhead. "I dunno," she said dully. "But I'm starved. I didn't even get to finish my breakfast..."

"Want to go make more pancakes?" Remus asked.

"Do you know how to make pancakes?" Liz asked, sitting back up. "I can't cook, I can burn water if I try hard enough."

Remus laughed and grabbed her hand, pulling her up. Liz blushed furiously as Remus said, "That's okay, I can teach you." Lowering his voice and glancing around, he said in a conspiratorial whisper, "My mum taught me some recipes, and not to insult Mrs. Potter or anything, but her pancakes don't hold a candle to mine."

"That good, huh?" Liz asked. "What happened to the modest Remus? You're starting to sound like James."

"Well..." Remus shrugged. "He must be rubbing off on me." He paused, one hand on the doorknob. "That's not good."

"Well then, we must do something to make up for it!" Liz declared. "After we're done making pancakes, we'll go to the library and spend the rest of the day doing nothing but reading!"

"Sounds good to me." The two kids went back down to the kitchen, where they found the breakfast dishes washing themselves in the sink.

"So, what do we need?" Liz asked, clasping her hands behind her back and looking around.

"Well, we'll need flour, and milk, and eggs..." Remus opened the pantry and began pulling out ingredients as he spoke. "Can you get a bowl? Make it a big one."

After getting all their ingredients assembled, Remus set Liz to the task of mixing while he measured. Liz glanced at the flour container, then stuck her hand in and pulled out a pinch. Remus smacked her hand lightly.

"Don't eat it, we still need four cups of that," he scolded as he took a pinch for himself. Liz tapped his nose with her powdery finger, leaving a white streak on his face. He laughed and reached out to leave floury finger tracks on her cheek. Acting on an impulse, Liz grabbed the spoon and flung a scoop of the stuff at Remus. It hit him in the chest and exploded, covering his shirt and making him splutter and cough. She laughed, only to find a second spoonful of flour thrown at her. She ducked and it hit the wall behind her. Oops.

"Uh-oh," Remus said, staring at his handiwork in horror.

"We can clean that up later," Liz said, casually walking over to the wall as though to examine it. She palmed an egg from the crate on the counter and turned to face Remus. "Anyway, I was thinking-" as she was speaking, she'd brought her hand up in a way that looked like she was about to scratch her ear, then she snapped her arm forward and the egg cracked on Remus' forehead, gooey yolk dripping into his eyes.

Remus lunged for the eggs and grabbed one, smashing it on the top of Liz's head. He laughed as she snatched the batter bowl and waved it threateningly at him. She shuddered as the egg dripped down the back of her shirt. Remus feinted left, then ducked right, grabbing Liz's wrists and accidentally upsetting the bowl. It landed with a _SPLAT_ at their feet, covering them in batter. They grappled with each other, slipping in the batter and falling on the floor.

"What is going _on_ in here?" Liz wiped batter out of her eyes and gulped. Mrs. Potter was standing in the doorway, her arms crossed and her foot tapping menacingly.

Remus scratched his ear. "Ah, we were making pancakes?" He swallowed hard as Mrs. Potter's eyes lingered on the flour splat on the wall and the eggs in the children's hair. Liz smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry about the mess-" she began.

Mrs. Potter sighed. "Normally, I'd make you clean it up on your own, but there's batter everywhere, so-" she puled out her wand and flicked it; instantly, the mess vanished. "You two are to go up to your rooms and think about what you've done. When I say you can come down, you can then muck out the horse stalls without magic."

Liz opened her mouth to object. After all, it wasn't _her_ mother, so what right did she have to punish her? Remus, however, elbowed her hard and she shut up.

"Go on," Mrs. Potter said, making a shooing motion with her hand. Liz could feel her gaze following them as they trudged up the stairs. They separated at their doors, but Liz wasn't about to settle for being locked up for Merlin knows how long. As she heard her door lock behind her, she stepped outside onto the balcony. She climbed nimbly onto the railing, keeping her balance easily. Narrow surfaces, she could do, but broomsticks were a whole other story.

Liz took a moment to steady herself, then jumped lightly from her balcony onto Remus', landing catlike on the stone. She peeked in the window to see Remus laying on his bed, staring glumly at the ceiling. Liz knocked gently on the glass and giggled as Remus jumped up, staring around wildly. His eyes fell on Liz and his jaw dropped open.

"What are you doing here?" Remus demanded as he pulled the door open. "How did you even get over here? Don't tell me you jumped!"

"Yeah, pretty cool, huh?" Liz bragged.

Remus sighed. "I'm not even going to bother trying to lecture you."

"Good, because we both know it's not going to work." Liz strode across the room and sat on Remus' bed. "So what do you want to do now?"

"How about you go back to your room because one, you're not supposed to be in here, and two, we're supposed to be punished, not having fun."

"Honestly, Remus, you've got to loosen up sometime!" Liz grinned at him, but he didn't smile back. "What's wrong?"

Remus' fists clenched. "Nothing." Liz gave him a look and he relented. "Full moon's coming up. I'm just worried that I'll-" he shook his head.

"Loose what?" Liz asked, her curiosity piqued.

He sighed. "My temper," he admitted, twisting his hands. "I found out that if I try to keep calm before the full moon, things usually go...easier."

"What do you mean?" Liz felt a knot forming in her stomach. He didn't answer. Liz's eyes widened when she realized what he meant. "You mean you don't hurt yourself as much," she whispered. It wasn't a question. Remus looked down, still refusing to speak. For once, Liz was lost for words. After all, what do you say to someone who worries about keeping their temper in check for the sake of their well-being later on?

"I'll go, if you want," she muttered, standing up and crossing to the balcony. She glanced back, but Remus didn't move. She sighed and jumped back to her own balcony, where she turned to watch the Quidditch pitch. James, barely three inches high from this distance, soared overhead, the Quaffle under his arm. A Bludger came pelting out of nowhere and he corkscrewed around it to the sounds of Peter's cheering and Sirius' angry yells. James scored, making the feat look easy. Liz was surprised to find herself wishing she could join them. Maybe Remus was right- prolonged exposure to James was rubbing off on them.

A small movement just outside her peripheral vision caught her eye. She turned and peered into the forest, her heartbeat quickening. But she was being silly- the Potters had wards set up to keep people from Apparating or Disapparating on their grounds. That didn't keep someone from Apparating just outside and simply walking in, though. She remembered what Remus had said- with James' father being high up in the Auror office, he'd be a prime target for the Death Eaters and Lord Volxemurt or whatever his name was. Voldimat? Valdiment? Voldemort?

Liz frowned. "Voldemort," she muttered, trying to think of where she'd heard that name. An image came floating to the forefront of her mind- James and an older Remus, sitting on the floor with their backs to her.

_"I can hear Voldemort murdering my mum..."_

Liz focused on the trees again, the hairs on the back of her neck prickling. She shoved her fist into her mouth to keep from screaming as she saw a man- at least, she assumed it was a man- clad in black with a hood up. Slowly, as though he could feel her eyes on him, he turned, his mask-covered face pointing straight at her. He gave her a sarcastic little salute, then turned and disappeared into the trees.

Liz stood, frozen, for five full seconds before she bolted for the door. "Mrs. Potter!" she yelled, banging on the door. "Mrs. Potter, you have to let me out! There's a man in the woods! Mrs. Potter!" She hammered on the door, kicking it and yelling at the top of her lungs. The door sprung open to reveal Mrs. Potter, looking very worried.

"You saw what?" she asked.

"I was watching the boys play Quidditch and I saw something in the trees and there was a man, he was wearing all black and he had a hood on and his face was covered by a mask, but I swear he was there, Mrs. Potter, he was looking at the house and he saw me and he left-"

"Calm down, child! He's gone now." Mrs. Potter hugged her quickly, then stood up. Her face was chalk white. She ran down the stairs, presumably to get the boys. "Stay there!" she yelled. Liz ran back out onto the balcony and jumped the gap between hers and Remus'. Her shoe slipped and for a moment, she wobbled, flailing her arms in an attempt to regain her balance, and lunged for the railing. She hit the floor and rolled to her feet, wincing as she felt her shoulder bruise, hard.

She banged on the door. "Remus, you have to open up right now!" she yelled. She danced on the spot as Remus rolled off his bed and crossed to the door, looking slightly irritated.

"Can I help you?" he asked. Without bothering to explain, Liz grabbed his hand and pulled him to the railing.

"Look." she pointed. Mrs. Potter was sprinting across the lawn, her hair coming out of its neat bun and her wand in her hand.

"James!" she yelled as she ran onto the pitch. "James, get inside, now! Sirius, Peter, come on!"

Perhaps it was the urgency in Mrs. Potter's voice, but the Marauders on the Quidditch field immediately turned and flew back to the house, James diving down and allowing his mother to climb on the back of his broom. They dismounted just outside the door, which was quickly shut and presumably locked.

Liz and Remus looked at each other. "What happened?" Remus demanded. Liz quickly explained the situation, stumbling over her words.

"A Death Eater? Are you sure?" Remus asked. Liz nodded fervently. "So that's what Mrs. Potter was worried about?" Liz stared at him.

"I thought you were smart, Remus, honestly!" she quailed at the look he gave her.

"I'm clarifying. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?" he demanded.

"Sorry." Liz's head snapped around as she heard Remus' door being unlocked. "Crap, I've gotta go!" Once again, she jumped back to her balcony, just as Mrs. Potter opened the door.

"Remus, I need you to go into the office, please."

"Yes ma'am," came his reply. Liz went to her still-open door and poked her head out.

"Am I going too?" she asked. Mrs. Potter nodded. She escorted them down to the office, where a very sheepish and worried trio of boys was waiting for them.

"Hi, mum," James said.

Mrs. Potter looked at them for several minutes. "How could you be so irresponsible?" she demanded. "You three-" she pointed at James, Sirius, and Peter, who shuffled their feet. "Sneaking out of the house when you knew we asked you to stay inside!"

"We were bored!" James yelled. "Can you blame us for wanting to have a little fun?"

"Would you want to pay for that fun with your life? There was a strange man in the woods, and he could have attacked you at any time!" Mrs. Potter held her son's gaze until he dropped it. Lesson learned.

"All five of you will be mucking out the stables tomorrow morning under my supervision," Mrs. Potter continued, but she was interrupted by James again.

"What did Liz and Remus do?" he demanded.

Mrs. Potter raised an eyebrow in a disapproving manner, but Liz thought she saw a glimmer of laughter in her eyes. "These two apparantly decided to make pankakes by throwing food at each other," she said. James, Sirius and Peter stared at them, openmouthed.

"Did you really?" James said. "I must be rubbing off on you!" Remus' mouth quirked up in a smile and Liz burst out laughing. "What's so funny?" James demanded.

"Nothing," Remus said.

"Yes, it's very funny," Mrs. Potter said. "Now look at me." The Marauders gulped, certain that there would be more punishments,but all she did was say, "I need you to understand that the rules about staying inside are there for a reason. Charlus and I have been worried about an attack for a while now, and this is why. We just want you to stay safe."

They all nodded. Liz risked a half-glance at James and was startled to see that he looked suitably chastened. Then again, while James was a troublemaker and believed rules existed for the sole purpose of breaking them, he wasn't stupid. Usually. This was one of those times when she realized he would actually toe the line. It was that serious.

**xxx**

The week wore on, with reports coming occasionally from Mr. Potter about what was going on in the Auror office. A witch, another Muggleborn, was found dead in her home one night, the Dark Mark shining above the building. The Marauders kept their promise and stayed inside. They didn't need a parent to enforce the rule now- although none of them would admit it, they were all scared.

Remus and Liz began to get testy, taking to shutting themselves in their rooms and read. James, Sirius, and Peter decided it would be best if they were left alone and stayed out of their way. Remus finally had to go home one Thursday to transform, leaving the others to deal with a sick and irritable Liz.

The boys stayed with her the whole night, talking quietly to her and sleeping in shifts. Liz mostly kept her eyes closed, only occasionally speaking a word and debating with herself. Her head hurt so badly, noises above normal conversation level pained her. Every so often, she would lean over the side of the couch to throw up into a basin. She made up her mind around dawn- they were going to see Remus that morning, wether he wanted them or not.

Liz felt the moon go down as her headache began to slowly subside. She rubbed her temples, the motion waking Peter, who was sitting next to her.

"Feel better now?" he asked, his eyes full of worry.

Liz managed a weak smile. "Yeah. I'm going to get a drink, would you mind-" Peter darted into the bathroom and was turning the tap before Liz finished speaking. "...Getting out of the way?" Liz finished halfheartedly. Peter returned with her cup. She took a sip and rubbed her eyes. Believe it or not, spending the night throwing up wore a person out. She shuddered when she thought about how Remus must be doing now.

"I want to go see Remus today," she said, sitting up slowly. Peter frowned.

"Don't you think he'd rather just sleep?" he asked. Liz shrugged.

"I still want to go see him," she said stubbornly.

"Wuzzagoinon?" Sirius mumbled as he woke up. "Oh! You're awake! James!" he threw his pillow at James, who didn't stir. "James! Wake up!"

"Uhhhh?" James said. "Not now, we have to get two more goals-"

"James!" Liz called. He rolled over and opened his eyes, then fumbled for his glasses. After perching them squarely on his nose, he blinked owlishly.

"Someone call?" he asked.

Peter explained the situation to James and Sirius as Liz went into the bathroom. She splashed some water on her face, studying her yellow eyes. She toyed with the idea of wether or not she should brush her teeth, then decided not to. She could do it after breakfast. She came out just in time to hear James saying, "Actually, I think it's a good idea- I would have suggested it myself, actually, but Liz got there first." He glanced up as she took a seat on the sofa and put her head between her hands, yawning hugely. "You alright?" he asked.

She took a few shaky breaths. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just need something to eat." James sprung up and pattered into the kitchen. Liz could hear the pantry being opened as she stood up. Sirius put his hands on her shoulders.

"Can you walk?" he asked. Liz shook him off.

"You don't need to baby me, Sirius, I'm fine now that the moon's gone down," she snapped, then winced. "Sorry, I'm just tired."

"It's fine," Sirius said as he let go. Liz went into the kitchen, where James was making a mess with the peanut butter.

"Do you need me to do that?" Liz asked after watching him struggle for a few seconds.

"No, no, I've- uh- got it," he answered as he dropped the knife on the counter.

"And this is why you don't use house-elves for everything," Liz snickered as she took the knife from him.

Mrs. Potter walked in, saw the mess in the kitchen, sighed and shook her head. Liz noticed she was carrying a bundle of letters, addressed in green ink. Her heart skipped a beat.

"Hogwarts letters?" she asked.

"Mm-hmm. James, clean that mess up," Mrs. Potter said, flicking her fingers at him. James shrugged and grabbed a rag from the sink, swiped it across the counter several times and threw it back in the sink, leaving an even bigger smear than before. "Lulee," Mrs. Potter sighed. The house-elf appeared in the kitchen with a _crack_, immediately spotting the mess. Without waiting to be told, she pulled a rag out from somewhere and began scrubbing.

"I take it we all passed, then?" Sirius asked as he sat down.

"See for yourself," Mrs. Potter said, handing him the bundle.

"Let's see- yeah, there's one for each of us, plus Moony, so we'll have to take it to him today," Sirius said, passing them around.

"What do you mean?" Mrs. Potter asked.

"We want to go see Remus today," Peter said. Liz nodded, her mouth full of peanut butter and toast.

Mrs. Potter looked from one stubborn face to the other. "You're all sure?" she asked. They nodded. Liz yawned and started choking on her breakfast. James thumped her on the back. "Are you alright?" Mrs. Potter asked Liz as she walked over to the fireplace. Liz nodded. Mrs. Potter shrugged slightly, then took a pinch of Floo powder from a porcelain container on the mantle and threw it in the fire. "Lupin Residence," she said as she stuck her head in. The kids watched for a few minutes, not daring to say a word. They could hear muted conversation, then Mrs. Potter pulled her head back.

"So?" James asked immediately. "What did they say?"

Mrs. Potter sighed. "Mrs. Lupin said Remus is asleep right now, but you can come over to visit. He usually wakes up around lunchtime."

"So we can go now?" Sirius asked.

"As soon as you get dressed." Mrs. Potter had barely finished speaking when four blurred shapes rushed past her, their footsteps echoing down the stairwell.

Liz threw on some clothes and hurried to James' room. She'd barely raised a fist to knock when James pulled the door open. "I'm coming," he laughed as they went to bang on Sirius' door. He took some time coming out, his hair neatly combed.

"What?" he said defensively at the looks on their faces. "Oh, there you are, Pete!"

"Don't sound so surprised," Peter said as he joined them. "Can we go now?"

"Yup!" James said, tugging his jacket on. "Let's go!" They ran down the stairs, taking them three at a time (or two, in Peter's case) and skidded to a stop in the kitchen, out of breath. Mrs. Potter grinned at them.

"I'll pick up your school supplies while you're gone," she said. "You'll be staying for dinner, and I expect you back here by ten."

"Sure thing, mum!" James said. He grabbed a pinch of Floo powder, stepped into the fire, and yelled, "Lupin Residence!" He vanished in a column of green flame. Sirius, then Peter went, then it was Liz' turn. She took some Floo powder, squeezed her eyes shut tight, and threw the powder down, calling Remus' address as she did so. The uncomfortable spinning sensation began, and Liz began to wish she'd had less breakfast. Finally, the spinning stopped and she found herself falling out of Remus' fireplace and into his kitchen.

* * *

**A/N: Cool! I'll get to do some stuff at Remus' house! Next chapter will also have them going back to Hogwarts! *breaks into song* Back to Hogwarts! Hogwarts!**

******I have a question for you readers: do you or don't you think Ebony should become keeper around fourth year? I want your honest opinions, because I don't want to accidentally have her become the star of the team and all that sh- shtuff. Yeah, that's what I was going to say. Shtuff. Like Mutts.**

******In the canon story, I guess it would have been Remus or Peter who saw the Death Eater. *shrugs* Anyway-**

******I'm so excited! On August eleventh and twelfth,, my family and I will be going to the WizardWorld comic-con in Chicago, and we'll get to meet William Shatner! I'm so excited! I'm going to wear my Star Trek outfit one day, and I'll be crossplaying as Remus the next day! I finally persuaded mom to let me get some rigid collodian, so I'll even have the scars and everything. Are any of you going? It would be so awesome if we ran into each other! Look for either the Vulcan girl with a blue dress and lousy Tricorder or the werewolf 'boy' with shaggy hair :) Yeah, that's right, I'm also getting my hair cut Wednesday :) Mom finally gave in to my month or so of begging, so yays!**

******Not really sure when the next chapter will be up. It might be a little longer wait than normal, since I'm trying to move this onto a Saturday weekly schedule. School starts on the sixth, so there will definitely be a chapter that Saturday. It's uncertain, but keep your eyes peeled!**

**My apologies to my anonymous reviewers! I totally forgot to reply last time, so here you go! Hugs to all!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**

**Imma gonna go eat mah Jell-O now.**

* * *

**quest: **OhMyG! dis is asmashing!(I make up words a lot) more please?

**I like to make up words, too :) here's more!**

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**daisy allie:** This was a great chapter! I am such a huge fan of Ebony, and I can't wait for the next chapter! Peter and Ebony being taught how to fly! So glad chapter 1 went up! Bye now :)

**I like Ebony too :) Yeah, she's learning, but she has to work for it, like REAL people do. Bye :)**

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**vibora:**I really like how Liz gets grounded from reading - my mom used to do that to me and it was pure torture - I should have turned her into CPS for that!

I am wondring if the crew would be concerned how the horses would have reacted to Remus...I think they would have been curious at least to make sure their friend was okay with them since they never really saw him around many animals. I was also not sure Remus went riding with them since you mention everyone else and something about the horse or riding skill but nothing about Remus except one sentance he says something while they are riding so I am guessing he was there.

I am also very curious as the which animal Liz will turn into...humm...fox - quick and sneaky or a mountain lion - quick sneaky, defens territory and likes high places?

**Okay, why aren't you using your account so I can reply normally? *wah face* Anyway, yeah, I got that grounding a lot too :( Animals don't act any differently to Remus, except when it's nearing the full moon. Your guesses are pretty good!**

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**vibora:**What a mmean way to end this chapter! I want to know what she was going to say! AAARGGGHHHH!

Still enchanted by your story!

I really like how Liz has problems with Quidditch - she really has to work at it and the hard work starts to pays off.

James is driving me crazy, alway wanting to break the rules...and that is a sign you are doing a great job...

at the end of the Liz and remus bonding when Siruis comes in and asks if they need more time, is it Liz or Remus that says "I'll be ready in a bit." - It looks like Liz says it but she comes out of the room. I would think it was Remus.

Hurry it up and get the next chapter done! I am literaly foaming at the mouth like a werewolf for more!

**Fast enough for you? *sighs* sorry for the delay :( And yeah, a MarySue would be naturally epic at Quidditch and make the team in first year. I know Harry does, but he's Harry Potter. The rules don't apply to him :P Liz said she'll be ready in a bit- she was in Remus' room, so she had to leave to get to her own. Makey sensy now?**

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**daisy allie:** This chapter rocked the world! I'm so psyched that voldy finally made an appearance! Ebony rocks, and I can't wait for the next chapter, especially since you ended it with a cliffhanger! /:( anyway, some prank ideas... well I feel like making things float... maybe all the tables and benches in the Great Hall? sorry, i'm terrible at coming up with pranks.

**Rocked the world, huh? Thanks :) Not much of a cliffhanger, but whatever. *shrugs* Maybe... omelet for you and I have an idea now for a Christmas prank! Thanks!**

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**Bigfan:** Can't wait to read more love this story

**Here's more!**

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**Foofooman3: **Write more. NOW!

**Read above reply :P**

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**Guest:**See, you can't blame me for writing it wrong. Of course, the movies I've been watching the most has been the 2010 version of Nightmare on Elm Street, so I can't use that as an excuse all that well.

So Voldy has finally put in an appearance, and the kids are being blase about it. Why does that not surprise me. As much as I hate to say it, I think something needs to happen to make them realize that they really shouldn't be acting like that.

Then again, with Ebony remembering the mark, they just might begin to do so at some point.

You already got your schedule. Back when I was in school, the first fifteen minutes of the start of first and then second term was devoted to having kids line up to get their schedule.

**Hearts in Strangeness, I assume? Anyway, never seen Nightmare, though it sounds awesome. Yeah, Voldy's come into the story and they're only just starting to realize how much of a threat he is... and yes, we got our schedules in the mail when school doesn't start until August. Sigh.**


	4. The Wolf's Den

**A/N: Cool, so here's chapter four! …But you guys already knew that.**

**Hugs and everything to everyone who reviewed! I guess it makes sense that the longer a series goes on, the more reviews you get per chapter… but I still love each and every one of them! You rock- made my day, those reviews, since my face is still swollen worse than Harry's when Hermione hit him with a Stinging Hex. Grr.**

**Best news ever! moonyschick25 is _finally_ continuing her story, Hearts of Red and Gold. If you haven't read it, go and do so _right now_. It is a beautifully written story and it's actually what made me want to write my own fanfiction, so you really have her to thank for Ebony. It is truly brilliant and she could use the reviews. What are you waiting for? Red this, then go read hers!**

**I don't know why so many people hate the Marauders era Peter- I think he was a sweet, kinda goofy kid until _after_ he graduated. That's just my opinion, but whatever. My version of Pete kind of reminds me of my little brother, only a little slower. Once they got out of school, I'm guessing James, Sirius and Remus just kind of forgot about him, outside their Order meetings. Maybe that's why he turned evil- if his friends totally forgot about him, it seems plausible.**

**Sorry, rant over.**

**Disclaimer: I am now the proud owner of a Gryffindor tie, but not Gryffindor itself. The rest should be obvious.**

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_When we last left our story, the Marauders went to Remus' house using Floo powder power._

* * *

Sirius helped Liz up and she grinned weakly at him. "You didn't knock your head this time," she said.

"Hey, I do some things right occasionally." He grinned back.

"Hello, Elizabeth," Mrs. Lupin- no, Ms. Caitlin, said, holding her hand out. Liz took it.

"Hi," she said. Ms. Caitlin smiled at her.

"How was your night?" she asked. Liz shrugged.

"I've had better birthdays," she said.

"Oh, last night was your birthday?" Ms. Caitlin asked. "I'm sorry, but happy birthday, for what it's worth."

"It wasn't too bad," she said. "My birthday was two days ago, anyway. Which reminds me-" she looked over her shoulder at the boys. "You still need to toss me in the lake."

Sirius laughed. "We know, Eb! We just wanted to wait until you were feeling better. James, you can help me."

"Not now, though, I'm tired." Liz turned back to Ms. Caitlin. How's-"

"Remus is asleep right now," Ms. Caitlin said, avoiding the question. Liz frowned, but kept silent. "Have you all had breakfast?"

"Nope," James said, sitting at the well-scrubbed wooden table. Liz took the opportunity to look around. Everything looked similar to her own home, with the same well-loved atmosphere, but there was something different about it. It took her a moment, then she realized- while everything at her house was either new or in good condition, there was an undeniable air of shabbiness to the house. The table was scratched and dented, the chairs were mismatched and worn, and the battered copper pots hanging from the ceiling looked like they were in need of a polishing. An old Dutch oven stood burning in the corner, giving off warmth.

"So, you're the boys Remus is always talking about," Ms. Caitlin said as she set a plate of eggs on the table. "I've wanted to meet you for a while now, but never had the chance."

"James Potter," James said, hurriedly swallowing his food and holding his hand out. Ms. Caitlin took it.

"Sirius Black."

"Peter Pettigrew."

"It's very nice to meet you, finally," Ms. Caitlin said, going back to the oven and pulling out a loaf of bread. She set it on the table, its crust steaming. Liz looked at the spread provided. Margarine. Remus really was poor. She picked up a piece of the bread and bit into it. Remus hadn't been lying- his mum really was a good cook. She devoured the slice in seconds.

"Remus will be so pleased to know you're here," Ms. Caitlin said, setting a few pieces aside, supposedly for Remus. "We haven't had visitors in a long time."

"Because of-?" Peter received two simultaneous kicks from James and Liz. Wincing, he bent over to rub his abused shins. Ms. Caitlin gave him an odd look, but didn't say anything.

"Where's Mr. Lupin?" James asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Still working," Ms. Caitlin answered, sitting across from Liz and placing her fingertips together. "There's been a nasty case going on involving a chimera; he's been having to work night shifts along with the day." She sighed and brushed her greying hair out of her eyes.

Liz privately thought that Remus would prefer it if his dad wasn't around. From what she'd seen in Dumbledore's office, the man clearly didn't like his son. She suppressed a growl and dug into her eggs. She hadn't realized how hungry she was.

After swallowing a bite, she said, "Can we go see Remus now?"

Ms. Caitlin nodded. "Just be quiet, please, he needs to sleep." She pointed at the single hallway leading off the kitchen. "That's his room," she added. "Only door on the left. And dears-" they all turned. "Don't be too surprised by what you'll see."

Liz's stomach knotted. How badly hurt was Remus? As they went to the doorway, Liz wondered why it was open. Then she saw the door had actually been ripped off its hinges, deep claw marks gouged into the doorframe. She swallowed.

Remus was lying in bed, the sheets drawn up to his chest. One of his arms had fallen out of the blankets, a bloodstained bandage wrapped around it. His face was a landscape of small cuts and bruises, and his breathing was shallow, as though he had broken ribs. Then Liz saw the blood oozing out through the sheets, about where his stomach would be, and she had to suppress the urge to vomit. His bandages had either slipped or were soaked through.

"Oh, Merlin," Sirius whispered, staring at the sleeping boy. "Oh, bloody hell, why didn't he tell us? A few scratches, he said? This isn't a few scratches!"

"Keep your voice down," James hissed. "It was obvious, though, didn't you think about where his scars come from?"

Peter was crying, tears running down his round face. He sniffled and wiped his face on his sleeve. "It's because he didn't want us to worry about him," he said. "Isn't it?"

"Look at this," James said, running his hand on the wall, where another score of claw marks could be seen. "Here- and here-"

"Do you think he broke the door down?" Liz asked, not taking her eyes off Remus' face.

"He did," Ms. Caitlin said from the doorway. She walked over to Remus and pulled the blankets off his torso to show four thick red stripes staining the bandages. She pointed her wand at them and they were replaced by clean ones, then she cleaned the sheets and tucked Remus back in. He muttered something in his sleep and tried to roll over, but Ms. Caitlin put her hand on his shoulder and he stopped moving.

"He broke the door down when he was six," she continued as though she hadn't been interrupted. "I kept offering to fix it, but he said he didn't mind. We had to get a shed out back." Ms. Caitlin's eyes seemed to dare them to leave, to desert Remus. The Marauders didn't move. After a long pause, she gave a slight shrug and turned to leave. "Come get me if he needs his bandages changed or if he wakes up, and don't let him roll over," she said, then went back into the kitchen.

"A shed?" Liz repeated faintly. She reflected on how lucky it was that Remus' mother once trained to become a Healer.

"They must have it enchanted, like the Shrieking Shack," James said thoughtfully as he traced a line of gouges on Remus' bedpost.

They sat on whatever they could find- Remus' trunk, his desk chair, which looked like the newest piece of furniture, and his nightstand. Liz and Sirius jostled one another for seat room on the trunk, settling into silence after Remus muttered again. After a while, Liz felt her eyelids begin to droop. She was vaguely aware of sliding off the trunk and onto the floor, curling up in a ball, and falling asleep.

Her dreams were haunted by the screams she'd heard coming from the Shrieking Shack, and images of Remus, beaten and bloody, lying on the floor in a pool of blood, swam in her vision. She twitched in her sleep. They couldn't help him, he was going to die-

_"We can help him this time," Peter said, grinning at her. I mean, we've been practicing. We know James and Sirius are big enough to keep him calm. This time tomorrow, they'll go to the Shrieking Shack after he leaves, and maybe next time, we can go too."_

_"It's this stupid bite, I think it's interfering," Liz growled, rubbing her wrist. "I almost have it, Wormtail, I just need a little more time-"_

"Ebony! Moony's awake!" James yelled happily in her ear. Liz shot bolt upright.

"Bloody hell, James, what were you thinking?" she yelled, then blushed when she saw Ms. Caitlin looking at her. "Er, sorry?"

"Don't swear," Remus' mother said as she bent to check on her son's arm. Remus peered around his mother and blushed when he saw Liz.

"Liz! You're here, too!" he said, his eyes wide. He pulled the sheets up to his chin, almost sending his mother falling off the bed.

"Duh," Liz answered, climbing stiffly to her feet. "Where these idiots go, I go too, you know."

"It's just- er- I was going to get out of bed-ah-" Remus stammered. Liz wondered what all the fuss was about.

James leaned over to her and said in a stage whisper, "What Moony's trying to tell you is that he's _naked_."

"Oh!" Liz squeaked, turning red. "I'll just- I'll just leave then."

"You do that," Sirius laughed as Liz scurried from Remus' room and into the kitchen. A moment later, Ms. Caitlin came out and sat next to her. They waited in silence, Liz drumming her fingers nervously on the table and thinking about her dream. What did it mean?

Were they actually going to complete the Animagus transformation? Peter looked older, a little less chubby, and about her height, for once. Maybe he was around fourteen? Fifteen? Liz couldn't tell, but the idea gave her heart. This really was going to work, it had to. She studied her fingers, trying to imagine them sprouting fur, or claws, preferably both. She wanted to be something strong, something that could fight. She already had an inkling of what either James or Sirius would turn into- that large black dog from her dream around New Year's, and the rat-

_Wormtail_...

So, Peter would turn into a rat? That made sense, she supposed. But was it fair to tell the boys what she thought she'd figured out, or would their transformations not work if they tried to skip straight to the end? Would she get them hurt by doing that? She sighed. She couldn't do that, not with a clear conscience. They'd have to work it out on their own. Liz dropped her head to the table with a muted _thunk_. What was the point of being a Seer if her stupid visions were absolutely useless?

After a while, the four boys came in, Remus being supported between James and Sirius. He was limping badly, favoring his right leg. Peter ducked around them and hurried to pull a chair out for Remus, and helped get him settled in. Liz half stood, wanting to help, but James just waved her off. "We've got this," he said, pushing the chair in to the table.

"You guys didn't have to come, I'm fine," Remus was insisting.

"Shut up and eat," Sirius ordered jokingly. Remus obediently picked up a slice of bread and began to nibble on it. Liz studied him as he ate. He wasn't desperate to get food into his system like she had been. In fact, he looked quite ill this morning.

"How are you feeling, Remus?" his mother asked as she rubbed his back gently. He shrugged.

"I've felt better," he said, smiling wryly. James laughed. Remus looked blankly at him. "What's so funny?"

"That's pretty much what Liz said earlier," James snorted. Remus smiled faintly, catching Liz's eye and flushing.

"Great minds think alike?" he suggested.

"Sure, let's go with that," Liz said. Her eyes trailed over Remus' arm. He was actually wearing short sleeves, for a change, probably to keep the bandages from rubbing. She winced when she saw the blood was beginning to seep through again. Ms. Caitlin noticed as well and waved her wand, replacing the bandages yet again.

"You need to eat, Remus," she said softly. "Keep up your strength."

"I'm not hungry, mum," Remus muttered, but took another bite of bread. "Bad enough I took a chunk out of my own arm-"

Liz and James did a simultaneous spit-take. "You _what_?" James choked, wiping his mouth. "Remus, please tell me you're joking."

Remus bit his lip and shook his head. Liz felt the tears begin to well up and tried to focus on the cracked teapot, refusing to let them fall. Why did it have to be Remus? What did he ever do to deserve this?

"Remus," Sirius began. "What happened?"

Remus just looked at him. "Do I really need to explain? I don't even remember it myself."

"Right," Sirius said awkwardly. "Just...asking."

"Does it hurt?" Peter asked, his face a mixture of curiosity and worry.

"A bit," Remus shrugged, and winced. Bloody hypocrite.

James sighed and pushed his glasses farther up on his nose, then seemed to perk up. "Hey, Remus, I brought that book over- you know, the one we've been looking at?"

Liz's eyebrows shot up. "_That_ one?" she asked. James nodded.

"The one about the cute fluffy animals," he said, grinning. Liz realized they hadn't worked on the Animagi project in a week and instantly felt guilty. Remus needed them, and they let him down. They were going to make up for that today.

Ms. Caitlin looked at them, a strange expression on her face. "Well, have fun with your book... about the cute, fluffy animals," she said. She cleared away Remus' now empty plate and began to pile the dishes in the sink. "Can I trust you to keep and eye on Remus?" she asked, and they nodded. Remus flushed.

"Mum, I'm fine, honestly-"

"I don't want him to be messing around, you got that? Just resting. If he needs his bandages changed, come find me."

"Don't worry, Mrs. Lupin, we'll be fine," James said. He and Sirius stood to help Remus up. "We'll just go outside and sit down."

"Take it easy." Ms. Caitlin kissed Remus' forehead gently. "And be quiet- your father just came back from work and he's sleeping."

"Yes mum," Remus said. Liz and Peter followed the boys as they helped Remus limp outside to the back porch, where they set him on a rickety old bench.

"What were you guys thinking?" Remus exploded as soon as they'd shut the door. "You shouldn't have come!"

"Shut it, Moony, we're your friends. If you didn't want us to come, you should have told us, but you didn't, and to be honest, we would have come anyway." James folded his arms. Liz, Sirius and Peter copied him. Remus buried his face in his hands.

"I didn't want you to see me like this," he mumbled.

"We would have seen you eventually." James pulled the Animagus book out of his jacket pocket and tapped the cover. "Remember?"

Remus sighed. "I just would have preferred you find out some other way."

"Well, we found out this way, so stop moping," Sirius said. He sat down on the porch and looked expectantly at James. "So, what's next?"

James pulled the bookmark out and ran his finger over the page. He gulped. "Now we have to try and imagine what animal we'll turn into. It says here that one way is to attempt to produce something called the Patronus Charm?"

"I've read about that," Remus said. "It's used to drive away dementors. It's like a projection of happiness, I think. But the thing is, Patronuses can take the shape of magical creatures, but you can't do that if you're becoming an Animagus."

"So we keep our fingers crossed and hope we don't get any magical creatures," Sirius said, shrugging.

"Well, that's not all, though- the Patronus Charm is hard. N.E.W.T. level hard, that's what we're talking about. Even fully fledged wizards have trouble with it."

"How many times do we have to say it?" James demanded. "We're the Marauders! We can do anything!"

"Uhh, excuse me?" Liz held her hand in the air. "Aren't you forgetting something? I'm lousy at Charms, remember?"

"I'm not very good at them either," Peter muttered.

"You're still better than I am," Liz said.

"Well, this time, we'll be helping you both, so don't worry about it," James said. "Do you know the incantation?" He addressed the last part to Remus.

"It's Expecto Patronum, but you also-"

"Expecto Patronum!" James cried, waving his wand. Nothing happened. "What was that?" James demanded, whirling to face Remus. Remus sighed.

"If you'd have let me finish, you'd know. You have to think of a memory, a really happy one. It has to be really powerful."

"Oh." James thought about it for several minutes. "Okay, I think I've got one." He raised his wand. "Expecto Patronum!" A small whoosh of silver stuff spurted out of his wand and died out. "Did you see that?" James said happily, dancing like a madman. "I got something! I got something!"

"Maybe your Animagus form is a cloud," Sirius teased.

"Oh, shush," James said. "Expecto Patronum!" Nothing happened this time. James sat down, dejected.

"You'll get it eventually," Liz said kindly. She was insanely jealous. James never had to work for anything, it seemed. He even got an extremely difficult spell to almost work on his second try. How was that fair?

"That was pretty good," Remus said, looking impressed. "That wasn't a true corporeal Patronus, but it's a lot closer than I was to getting one."

"I'm just that awesome," James bragged.

"Aren't there any other ways to try to figure out what your animal will be?" Liz asked desperately. James rolled his eyes, but picked up the book and scanned it.

"Not that I can see...hmm..." His eyes flicked back and forth, trying to find other solutions. "Well, there's a footnote here, saying that if you can find the one word that can sum up your entire character, that will help, but the Patronus is the most reliable and accurate way..."

"One word?" Liz confirmed. James nodded. "Great. Just great."

"Who cares to have a go?" Sirius asked. "Anyone?"

"Just give us a minute," Liz snapped, rubbing her eyes. One word that summed up her entire character? This was like that best quality/worst quality thing, only harder. Just one word? Brave? Nope, that wasn't it. Sneaky? Still nope. Learner? She frowned. That was close, she thought, but not quite...

"I've got it!" Sirius said, grinning.

"Don't hold it over our heads, tell us!" James said.

Sirius spread his hands. "Loyalty."

Liz grinned at him. "It's perfect."

"That sounds like a dog to me," Peter said. Liz's eyes widened. Sirius... Sirius was the dog. It seemed freakishly obvious, now.

"It does fit, doesn't it?" Remus mused. "I guess I'd have to say loner."

"But you have us," Peter protested. Remus shook his head.

"I do, but I generally don't like making friends. I prefer to keep my distance."

"But why?" James asked. "You just need to give people a chance."

"I think the word he's actually looking for is caring," Sirius said. "He cares too much about other people before himself, am I right?" He shot the question at Remus, who looked rather startled.

"I suppose..." Remus smiled tentatively at them.

"I think I have mine," James said. "Protector."

"Maybe you're a bear?" Sirius suggested. James looked thoughtful.

"No... I don't think so..."

"Survivor," Peter said.

"Maybe you'll turn into a cockroach," Liz snickered.

"Oh, shut up," Peter muttered.

"What do you think, Liz?" Sirius asked. Liz grinned, the answer finally coming to her.

"Curiosity," she said. So what did it mean?

"Oh, duh," Sirius said. "I know what you'll be! 'Curiosity killed the cat?'"

Liz swatted him. "You're a prat."

* * *

Remus' friends stayed with him the whole day. After working some more on their Animagi transformations, and quite a few failed attempts at the Patronus Charm, James put the book away and stared out into the trees. His eyes lingered on the shed and Remus gulped.

"Is it fully grown?" James asked. In response to Remus' inquiring look, he said, "The wolf. Is it fully grown?"

Remus shifted uncomfortably, wincing as he felt the scabs on his stomach crack. "I'm not really sure. I think it is, though, judging by the size of the paw prints."

"In there?" James pointed to the shed and Remus nodded. "Do you mind if we-"

"Er, no," Remus said. "I'll just stay here, I guess." Liz smiled slightly at him as she and the others stepped of the porch and waded through the waist-high grass, following the path made by he and his mother. The Lupins lived far from anybody else, in a small clearing in the middle of a forest. They didn't want to take any chances that anyone would hear Remus when he was transformed, and if he were to get out, he wouldn't have anyone to bite and infect...save for his parents.

Remus leaned back and closed his eyes. He was so tired, despite his sleeping in until... what was it, three? So he'd woken up at around... one or two, he wasn't quite sure when.

Needless to say, he'd been quite shocked when he'd woken up to find his friends sitting in his room; even more so when _Elizabeth_, of all people, sat up. His mother should have known better than to let her in- what if the blankets had slipped? Oh, Merlin, he really didn't want to think about that. Bad enough if it had been just the guys, but Liz? Remus shook his head slightly, then stopped. His neck was still stiff and sore, probably from the gouge he'd managed to carve on the side. That one was mostly healed now, courtesy of his mum, but the larger injuries just flat-out refused to heal. He didn't want to think about how long it would take for his arm to heal.

"Moony?"

Remus opened his eyes to find his friends standing around him. "Yes?"

"You said there were paw prints in the shed," James continued. "But it's a concrete floor."

Remus wanted to smack himself. He could be really thick sometimes.

"It's from the blood, isn't it?" Sirius asked, looking at him nervously. Remus gulped. Did they really think he was a monster now? He mentally prepared himself for them to go inside and ask his mum to let them go, and to tell him to stay away from them at Hogwarts. What happened next surprised him beyond what words could say- Liz hugged him. Gently, so as not to hurt him further, but a hug nonetheless. Sirius, then James, then Peter joined in, each of them being as careful as Liz. After a moment, Remus gave them a one-armed hug back.

"You guys aren't scared of me?" he asked tentatively.

"Remus," Sirius said, "You know you can be really thick sometimes, right?"

"Trust me, if we didn't want to be friends with you, you'd know," James said.

Remus smiled. "Thanks," he said quietly. "For everything."

**xxx**

They spent the rest of the day talking outside, playing card games (the normal kind, not Exploding Snap) and just hanging out. Mr. Lupin woke up around dinnertime, and the meal was spent in uncomfortable silence, Remus' friends shooting one another looks over their plates. Remus could tell they didn't want to linger, so he bid them farewell as soon as they were done eating. Sirius hadn't even asked for seconds.

"We'll see you in a few days," Peter said, before taking some Floo powder and disappearing in a _woosh_.

"Bye, Moony!" James and Sirius called. "Jinx! You owe me a Butterbeer! Jinx! Jinx! Jinx Ji-"

"Okay, that's enough," Liz said, punching Sirius lightly on the shoulder. "Just take teh Floo powder and go."

"Me first!" they both cried. "Ji-"

"Just do rock, paper, scissors," Liz said, rolling her eyes. After a furious match, James took his Floo poder and disappeared, then Sirius.

"See you, Moony," he said before going up in flames.

Liz tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I guess I'll see you, then," she said awkwardly.

"Yeah," Remus said. "I'll see you."

They stood there for a moment, then Liz hurriedly grabbed her own Floo powder to go back to James' house. "Potter Manor," she called, and then she was gone.

"Did you have fun?" Mrs. Lupin asked, looking up from her knitting.

"Yeah, mum." Remus tried to put some weight on his bad leg and winced. "Er, could you help me get back to my room?" James and Sirius, who had taken it upon themselves to practically carry him around, had left him standing on one leg in the middle of the kitchen.

"Oh, of course!" Mrs. Lupin put down her needles and came over to him, leaning down slightly so he could put an arm around her neck. She helped him limp back to his bedroom, then tucked him in bed. "How are your cuts doing?"

Remus held his arm out to her. The bleeding had stopped a while ago, so all she had to do was just replace the bandages to prevent infection. His stomach, while still in pain, was much better than it had been.

After checking him over and making sure everything was in order, Mrs. Lupin sat on the edge of his bed. "I noticed that your friends have been calling you Moony," she began. "Doesn't that bother you?"

Remus hadn't been expecting the question. "No! Of course not- why would I?"

"I just thought you wouldn't want them to be referring to your...problem...when they really shouldn't have been. Aren't you worried someone will figure out what it means?"

He thought about it. "No, I'm not, actually. It's not like it's super-ovious or anything, and I think it''s kind of their way of telling me they don't care." He blinked and smiled to himself. _They don't care, _he thought happily._ They really don't!_

"I'm just making sure," she said, then kissed his forehead. "Sleep well, sweetie. I love you."

* * *

**A/N: Yes, so in Liz's dream, she called Peter Wormtail, even though it was before he'd done a complete transformation- all will be explained in time, I promise! I just wanted to make that clear.**

**Again, check out Hearts of Red and Gold by moonyschick25. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED! I PROMISE!**

**Thank Merlin this chapter was so much easier to write than the last one. *wipes forehead* I'm actually rather pleased with it. We get some insight into Remus' home life and all that. I probably should develop his father's character and all... sometime.**

**Looks like I lied about them going back to school in this chapter. But next one will be... *breaks into song* Back to Hogwarts! Hogwarts! Back to witches and wizards and magical beasts- ah, whatever.**

**And of course, in keeping with my pen name, my friend came over yesterday and we played D&D for SIX AND A HALF HOUR STRAIGHT! O_O We finally got up to level seven and it was awesome.**

**Hehe. Replies to anonymous reviews below, as per usual.**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**

* * *

**daisy allie:** wow! that was so cool! i was scared when she saw the death eater in the woods! D: this chapter was amazing! CAN NOT WAIT FOR THE NEXT CHAPTERRRR! i think it would be cool if ebony became keeper around fourth year :) so excited for the next chappterr!

**Well, here you go :) I'm surprised so many people enjoyed last chapter; I had a difficult time writing it and I'm not totally pleased with the results. I wasn't even expecting the Death Eater to show up- go figure. The keeper thing? So far, that's two for, one against, and one rooting for Chaser. The poll is still open until the start of part four!**

* * *

**JoeSax:** Keeper? I would choose chaser, she seems more suited to racing up and down the pitch. I LOVE THE STORY. Yay... (fairy pixie dance) la la la ( yes, I'm male... SO) la la la...  
3 hours later  
falls on floor in exhaustion and wih dying breath  
Keep up the good work dndchk  
falls asleep

**Although Chaser is my favorite position (and what I'd totally want to play) I don't want her stealing the spotlight from James. Fairy pixie dance? I DO THE DUCKY MOMO DANCE! HA! :) I always like to hear your thoughts on this- I think you're the only consistent anonymous reviewer who's been following this since about chapter two or three.**


	5. I Think I Really do Like Her

**A/N: MERLIN'S SPARKLY UNITARD, fifty-four reviews for just four chapters? Awesomesauce!**

**Well, I finally updated! Sorry about the wait. Blame my dad. He planned this fancy getaway for my mom and dropped me and my brother off at a friend's house for the weekend, so I obviously wasn't able to type. Then I just totally forgot, so here I am, frantically typing to get this chapter out. This chapter, which really didn't want to be written, for some reason. I'm just better with emotional scenes, I guess. I'm still very proud of chapter eighteen- DON'T POINT THOSE WANDS AT ME!**

**I did do something productive, though- I got my friend hooked on AVPM, and I dared her to read the WORST fanfiction ever written (need I say more?), so that makes everything better, right? Right? And I got distracted by practicing with the rigid collodian. I'm still super-excited about the convention XD Either way, my werewolf scars look awesome for a first attempt!**

**I can now tie a tie better than my brother. Isn't that weird? I don't even need a mirror!**

**This chapter was proofread by above mentioned friend, rocknroll chick. Thanks! By the way, readers, I think I might have accidentally posted the non-edited portion... there was an incident with some weird formatting and stuff. Sigh.**

**AND MY FACE IS FINALLY BACK TO NORMAL! YAY! NO MORE CHIPMUNK CHEEKS! Sorry for the all caps, I just needed to get that out. *does a victory dance***

**Disclaimer: I am nothing but a humble high school student who has twisted the works of JKR to suit her devious storyline.**

* * *

Remus returned to the Potters' home the next day. He mostly just sat and hung out with his friends, laughing along, but not joining in, as the Marauders threw Liz into the canoe lake for her birthday. He was very grateful that none of them decided to be funny and pull him in. His latest scars still had a long way to go before they healed.

They received the results from their final exams along with their letters. Remus was rather pleased with his- he'd even managed to pass his potions final by a rather high mark (for him). Peter received low, but passing, grades in everything. James and Sirius, of course, had the highest grades out of all of them, with James managing to score a hundred and ten percent on his Transfiguration final.

Liz was devastated when she discovered she'd failed Charms by two points. After congratulating the others on their successes, she retreated to her room and locked the door, refusing to come out for dinner. James, who had gone to try and bring her down, later reported that she was up there crying. Remus didn't know how to respond to this bit of information, but promised himself that if Liz ever asked for help on her homework, he'd do it.

He was quite embarrassed that the Potters had bought his schoolbooks for him while they were at Diagon Alley; even more so when they insisted on paying for them. Mrs. Lupin had Flooed over to try and pay them back, resulting in a very loud argument, and finally, her staying for dinner. Remus was extremely happy about this, since his mother's old friends refused to see her again after Remus had been bitten, something he harshly blamed himself for. Now, it seemed, she was finally making friends again.

The night before they had to leave was rather chaotic. The Marauders were scrambling about, retrieving belongings that had somehow managed to scatter themselves throughout the house, and accusing one another of taking things.

"Sirius! Where'd my cloak go?" James yelled, his backside sticking up in the air as he pressed his face to the carpet in a vain attempt to see under the sofa.

"Why would I have it?" Sirius yelled back, poking his head over the banister that overlooked the living room. For some strange reason, his tie was tied around his head like a headband.

"You borrowed it when we were sitting on the terrace yesterday, remember?" James snapped, shoving his hand under the sofa and feeling around. "Could you move your feet, Remus?"

Remus obligingly swung his feet off the floor and onto the couch. He was already packed and was trying to read, but kept getting distracted by the shouts and war cries of his friends.

"I didn't take it!" Sirius hollered as Liz joined him on the balcony. She was holding her slingshot in one hand and a Stink Pellet in the other. She and Sirius exchanged wicked grins as Liz loaded it up and aimed it at James, who still had his bottom in the air.

"Well, it's not in my bedroom- YOW!" James leapt up, clasping his bottom and howling. Liz shoved the slingshot into Sirius' hands and darted back into her room. James whirled and glared at Sirius, who paled. Remus sighed as James sprinted up the stairs, yelling threats of revenge. Peter hurried past him, his arms full of parchment and empty potion bottles.

"Hey, Moony?" Peter asked, skidding to a stop. "Have you seen my jumper? The blue one?"

"I'll help you look for it," Remus said, getting up. "I just need to go put this in my trunk." He held the book up for inspection. Peter studied it.

"That's our Defense Against the Dark Arts book, isn't it?" he said, peering at the title- _Dark Creatures of Our World_. He hesitated, then said, "Did you happen to see page-?"

"Three hundred ninety-four?" Remus said wryly, and Peter nodded. Remus shrugged. "Don't worry about it, Pete, if it's part of the curriculum, it has to be taught."

"Aren't you worried somebody else will figure it out?" Peter asked.

"No," Remus said. _Yes_, Remus thought. He was worried, extremely worried, but he couldn't do anything about it. "Let's go find your jumper," he said, trying to put it out of his mind.

Two hours, three stubbed toes and one confiscated slingshot later, both the cloak and the jumper had been found, along with a colony of dead puffskeins under the drawing room cabinet. The Marauders were all packed and were quite eager for what promised to be another exciting school year.

"You know what I think?" James drawled as they lounged on the floor in his bedroom.

"You can think?" Sirius asked. James rolled his eyes.

"Yes I can, thank you very much. I was _thinking_ that we need to mark each school year with something awesome!"

"Like what?" Peter asked.

"Well, last year, we figured out Remus is a werewolf," James began.

"And you think that's awesome?" Remus asked, not sure wether to be offended or amused.

"Well, maybe not awesome, but it was certainly significant," James said. "So we need to do something every year, to commemorate the times when the Marauders were at school! We'll be legends!"

"I doubt that, but it's still a cool idea," Liz said. She twirled her hair around her finger. "So what will we do this year?"

"I haven't figured that out yet."

Sirius started cracking up. "And that's what you get when you try to think," he said in a goofy voice.

"We'll definitely have to think about this one," James said stubbornly.

"I have an idea, sort of," Peter said. Everyone turned to him. "What if we made a map?"

"A map of Hogwarts?" James asked. Peter nodded. "Is that even possible?"

Remus shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, you can't make a map showing where Hogwarts is, since it's unplottable-"

"Say what?" Liz asked.

"It means it can't be found on a map," Sirius said. They looked at him. "What? My father made our house unplottable, I would like to think I know what it means!"

"Okay then," Peter said. "But what I was saying- not just any old map of Hogwarts. I was thinking of a map that shows where everyone is."

"Everyone?" James asked. "Like everyone, where they are, what they're doing, at every moment?"

"That sounds so awesome!" Sirius grinned. "We could probably use a modified version of a Tracking Charm-"

"Not more Charms!" Liz groaned, banging her head on the floor.

"Suck it up, sister, we're going to do it," James said, sitting up.

"As if the Patronus Charm wasn't enough to have to deal with," she muttered. "All I can say is that my Charms grade had better go up or it's totally not worth it."

**xxx**

Mrs. Potter woke Remus up the next morning with a cup of hot tea. "Come on, dear, you don't want to miss the train."

Remus yawned and opened his bleary eyes. "I'm coming," he mumbled. Mrs. Potter set the cup on his bedside table and left. Remus rolled over and rubbed his eyes, then got dressed. It took him several minutes to realize that the reason why he couldn't find his trousers zipper was because he'd put them on backwards. After redressing, he gulped the tea down in an attempt to wake up better, then glanced at the clock. Nine-thirty. He still had some time.

Remus made sure he'd packed everything, checking and double checking his list for anything he might have forgotten, then seized the handle and began dragging his trunk downstairs. He ran into James just outside his door, who was holding a half-eaten piece of toast in one hand, his broomstick in the other, and looking very frazzled.

"Turns out, that wasn't my cloak, that was Sirius', and I can't find mine," he said, taking another bite of toast.

Remus sighed. "Can't you just ask your mum to do a Summoning Charm?"

James gaped at him for a moment, then clapped a hand to his forehead, scattering crumbs everywhere. "I'm such an idiot!" He darted away, yelling, "Thanks, Moony," over his shoulder as he left. Remus grinned and continued dragging his trunk downstairs, then stopped. James wasn't the only stupid one this morning.

"Lulee," he called hesitantly. The house-elf appeared with a _crack_.

"Yes, Master Remus?" she asked.

"Er, could you please take my trunk to the entrance hall?" he asked.

"Certainly, Mater Remus." Lulee snapped her fingers and Remus' belongings disappeared. "Is there anything else, Master Remus?"

"No, thank you, Lulee, that's it," Remus said. Lulee smiled toothily at him and popped back to wherever she'd come from.

"Hi, Remus," a voice said from behind him. Remus screamed and jumped nearly a foot in the air.

"Liz!" he yelled, glaring at the girl, who was in hysterics. "That is immature and seriously not funny!"

"Okay, first of all, I'm definitely not mature, and secondly, it was hilarious," she said, giggling madly.

Remus shook his head. "Are you done?"

"Sure, sure," Liz snickered. She walked with him to the stairs. "That was smart, getting Lulee to get your trunk. I dragged mine halfway down the stairs before I thought of it."

Remus grinned. "Well, at least you thought of it at all," he suggested.

"Yeah, I guess so," Liz said. She pulled a brush out of her pocket and yanked it through the snarls in her hair. "So James and Sirius are planning on finding Snivellus today, maybe throw a few Dungbombs- want to come?" Remus was taken aback. Her tone was as casual as though they were talking about the weather, not planning on deliberately taunting a student.

"No," Remus said. "Why would you want to do that?"

"Uhh, let me think about that- because it's funny?" Liz asked. "Come on, Remus, it's just Snape, what's the big deal?"

"I know you guys don't like him much-"

"Understatement of the year, that was," Liz muttered.

Remus ignored her. "But he's a person with feelings, too, you know. Couldn't you guys just lay off him for once?"

"Lay off who for once?" Sirius asked, coming from the opposite direction. "You don't mean Snape?" he looked at Liz in exasperation. "Why did you tell him? Now he's going to be a Flobberworm and tell us not to do it!"

Remus fidgeted under their glares. He didn't want them to decide he wasn't a good enough friend for them, but at the same time, he didn't want Snape to be tormented... his friends or Snape? "Fine," he snapped. "But don't expect me to come along."

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Sirius said, grabbing Liz's hand and pulling her after him. "Come on, we need to go get your slingshot back if we're going to pul this one off..." Remus tried to ignore the sour taste in his mouth as Sirius, who refused to let go of Liz's hand, dragged her down the stairs. She shot him an apologetic look before yanking her hand out of Sirius' and following him.

James' parents apparated the group to an alley set up by Hogwarts to use as an apparation point. Mr. Potter went ahead of them and returned with trolleys, which were loaded up immediately. They hurried to the barrier dividing platforms nine and ten, and one by one, James and the others ran through onto platform nine-and-three-quarters.

There was smoke everywhere, and owls hooted and cats hissed as their owners pushed their way through the crowd, yelling greetings to friends. The occasional croak of a toad was heard through the hubbub, as well as the cries of younger siblings who were forced to remain behind for another year. James thought he saw a flash of red hair and almost called out, but since he couldn't be certain that it was Lily, he held back.

Liz spotted her parents talking to Remus' mother near the engine, and she and Remus hurried over to them to say their good-byes. James was watching them until Sirius poked him in the ribs.

"That's _them_," he said, and his tone left no doubt as to who it was. James followed his friend's gaze to a haughty looking couple with a small boy between them. The boy looked like Sirius in miniature, but the way he carried himself was different. While Sirius tended to slouch, or bounce excitedly on the balls of his feet, the boy stood tall and still, though his excitement was still there under his facade.

"So that's little Regulus, huh?" James asked, studying his friend's family.

"Yeah. He used to be a sweet kid until my parents got to him," Sirius said darkly. "He practically worships the ground my cousin Bellatrix walks on." James cocked his head at the unusual name. Sirius, needing no further prompting, went on. "My cousins Bellatrix and Narcissa are just like my parents- well, the rest of the family, really. My cousin Andromeda is pretty cool, though."

"I thought he wasn't starting Hogwarts until next year, though?" James asked.

Sirius shrugged. "They're probably here to see Cissy off."

Liz and Remus finished saying their goodbyes and came back over to the group. "Ready to go?" Liz asked, looking upset for some reason. Her arms were wrapped around her owl's cage.

James hugged his mother embarrassedly, his face reddening when she smothered him with kisses. "Bye, mum, dad," he said.

"Have a good year, sweetie, and _stay out of trouble_," his mother said. James nodded, but everyone knew that rule had flown out the window before it had even been spoken aloud.

They loaded their trunks on the train and leaned out the window as the scarlet steam engine began to move. They waved madly until the train rounded a corner and their parents fell out of sight.

"Let's go find a compartment," Remus said. They turned and began dragging their trunks down the corridor, peering into windows as they passed, but every compartment was full as far as they could see. Finally, they came upon a very familiar compartment.

"Isn't this the one we sat in our first train ride?" Sirius asked, opening the door.

"Looks like it," James said, hauling his trunk into the luggage rack. He sat down and looked expectantly at the group. "So what do you want to do?"

"Read," Liz said shortly as she pulled a book out and cracked it open. James looked at the title, a tingling feeling in his stomach. _Charms for Beginners: Year Two._ Looked like Liz was already studying.

"Does this mean you're not coming with us to prank Snape?" James asked.

"Pretty much," she said, not looking up. James scowled.

"You're no fun," he muttered.

Liz slammed the book shut and glared at him. "Well, sorry, but not all of us are perfect like YOU!"

"Whoa, calm down, Ebony," Sirius said. Liz rounded on him.

"And don't get me started on you!" she snapped. "I actually have to _work_ if I want to pass my classes, so you can't blame me if I want to spend some time studying! Mum said that if I don't pass Charms this year, I won't be allowed to go to James' house next summer, so I suggest you leave me alone!"

Jame looked at Remus. "I thought the full moon was just last week?"

Remus shrugged, clearly just as baffled by her outburst as the rest of them. Peter nudged James, his eyes wide. James looked at him and shrugged. Girls. Who could understand them?

"Well, if we want to catch Snivellus before the trolly comes around, we'd better get going," James said as he stood and pulled the invisibility cloak and a bulging bag of Dungbombs from his trunk. "You coming, Moony?"

"I'll stay here, thanks," Remus said quietly, retrieving his own book. Peter, however, jumped up. James groaned to himself, but motioned for the two boys to huddle next to him. He threw the cloak over them and opened the door.

"So, where do we start?" Peter asked. Sirius assumed a 'duh' expression that made James snort.

"Well, let's think. The compartments we passed on our way here were full, and Snape wasn't in any of them, so he must be somewhere between us and the back," he said in a superior tone.

"Oh, right!" Peter said. "Lead the way!"

"I believe that would be my job, actually," James said as he strode off down the corridor, Sirius and Peter hurrying to keep pace lest the cloak slip off them. They took careful note of the occupants of each compartment, especially the one that a certain Lily Evans was sitting in with Sarah and Victoria, along with some Ravenclaw girl that Peter whispered was Ashley Nickels. James made a mental note of which compartment it was and kept going.

They found Snape and his group a few compartments down. Sirius and James exchanged smirks as James pulled several Dungbombs out of the bag.

"Now what?" Peter asked. James motioned for them to sit on the floor.

"We wait for one of them to go to the bathroom, then we light these babies and throw them in."

Liz resisted the urge to scream. She'd reread the same sentence in her textbook at least four times and didn't understand any of it. She battled with herself- should she keep trying to figure it out on her own or swallow her pride and ask for help? She glanced over at Remus, who was absorbed in his own textbook. She decided that when it came to going to James' house for the summer, her pride would just have to go jump off the Astronomy Tower. She cleared her throat awkwardly.

"Er, Moony?" she asked. He looked up.

"Yes?"

Unsure of how to word her plight, Liz held her book out with a pleading expression on her face. Remus grinned, got up and sat next to her. "What do you need help with?"

"Uh, all of it?" Liz asked. He laughed.

"I find it generally helps to start at page one," he began, then looked at the book. "Oh."

"Yeah. Oh," Liz mimicked. Remus flicked her lightly.

"Do you want my help or not?" he asked.

Liz folded her hands in her lap and looked at him expectantly. "Yes, please."

"Okay," Remus said, taking the book from her and scanning the page. "Let's start with this- the theory behind creating new Charms."

Liz tried to remember, but the information just kept leaking out of her brain. Remus finally started having her repeat passages that he'd read, and to her delight, she could do that fairly easily. Unfortunately, it wasn't just about parroting facts back at him, though that helped. What Liz really needed was to _understand_, but for some reason, she just couldn't. She knew that waving a wand and saying _Wingardium Leviosa_ made things float, not how it worked.

"Think about it this way," Remus said as he was talking her through Rictusempra. "Instead of physically tickling the person, you exert your energy, to make them feel the sensation of being tickled. Your wand is a conductor for that energy and-"

"And if you have enough energy behind it and the mindset to make it happen, it'll work?" Liz asked. Remus sat back and spread his hands. She gaped at him. "It's that easy?"

"It's that easy," he said. "I think I figured out why you have such a block for Charms spells- you're supposed to defy natural laws when you use Charms, and you have a hard time accepting that. James is so good at Transfiguration because he can see the connection between one thing and another more easily than others. He sees a match, recognizes how it could become a needle, and just makes it happen. And you're good at Defense work because it's about...well, how do I say this without sounding like a jerk? When you went up against Dranseau last year, you wanted to beat him at his own game, so the spells came easily to you. You want to win more than others, so you put all your energy into winning."

"So Lily's good at Charms because she sees how it's possible to make someone spontaneously burst into giggles for no apparent reason?" Liz asked curiously.

Remus nodded. "I think that's what it is, anyway. I read a book about it, and that's basically what it said... I'll have to look it up when we get back to Hogwarts."

Liz looked thoughtful. "You remember that freezing charm we used on the Great Hall last year?" When Remus nodded, she said, "I had a lot of trouble trying to freeze a plain floor, so James suggested I try to start on a glass of water. It came a lot more easily then, because I could see how a glass of water would freeze. The floor was a lot more difficult."

"Maybe if you tried Rictusempra on a ticklish person, it'll be easier for you," Remus suggested. Liz drummed her fingers on her knee.

"Where would we find a ticklish person, though?" she wondered. "Peter's off with James and Sirius doing who-knows-what..."

"Please just don't do it on me," Remus muttered. Liz eyed him.

"You're ticklish?" she asked. She didn't remember him being that ticklish.

"Crap," Remus muttered. "Fine, you can try it on me, just don't blow me up!"

Liz swallowed, but pulled her wand out. They practiced on one another in Charms class, so how different could it be, really? "Rictusempra," she said hesitantly. Remus just sat there.

"You have to mean it," he said.

"Rictusempra!" Liz said. A jet of light hit Remus and he began to giggle madly, falling off the seat and rolling on the floor. Liz lifted her wand and Remus picked himself up off the floor, grinning.

"I lied, you know," he said.

"_What_?" Liz demanded.

"I'm actually not that ticklish," Remus said. "Congratulations, I think we just found your problem- you need to be more confident."

"Hi, Pot, my name's Kettle," Liz said, holding her hand out. Remus shook it, grinning.

A foul odor wafted through the crack under the door and they stiffened. "I think that would be our friends' prank going off," Remus said, getting up and opening the door. He and Liz gagged at the stench and pulled their shirt collars over their noses in a vain attempt to block the smell. They hurried into the corridor and set off after their friends, pushing past curious students who had poked their heads out the door.

"Excuse us, coming through," Remus called as they hurried down the corridor, trying to keep from gagging. They came upon a rather strange sight- James, Sirius and Peter were sitting in the middle of the corridor, drenched in Stinksap, being shouted at by Lily. Snape was standing over the three boys, his wand out and ready, covered in scraps of Dungbombs.

"You're such prats, Potter, Black, I don't know what you were thinking! Why would you stink up the entire train for the sake of a nasty prank? You're always picking on Sev-"

At Lily's words, Snape's pallid face flushed, and he glared at her.

"I don't need your help, Lily!" he growled. "Just let me get at them-"

"No!" Lily shrieked. "You say you're soooo much better than these gits, but what do you do when they prank you? Cover them in Stinksap and make everything worse!"

"I wouldn't have done it if they hadn't-"

"We were just having fun!" James protested.

"He deserved it!" Sirius hollered.

The shouts began to build up until the anger was palpable. Several older students came along, trying to calm the pandemonium, but the noise just kept growing until-

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!" There was a _BANG,_ followed by a cloud of smoke. Several people screamed, Liz included. When the smoke cleared, it was to reveal a very angry looking Ravenclaw prefect. Liz's eyes fell on the silver badge on the girl's robes. _HG_. Head Girl. Oh, dear.

"Now then," the Head Girl said clamly, her eyes narrowed. "What happened here?"

To no one's surprise, it was Lily who spoke first. "It was Potter, Black, and Pettigrew, Marina. They came to Sev's compartment and threw Dungbombs everywhere."

Marina looked at her. "And then they covered themselves in Stinksap?" She asked. Lily shuffled her feet.

"Well no, that was Severus," she admitted. Marina nodded, then looked at the boys.

"I'll be sending letters to Professors McGonagall and Slughorn," she said. She waved her wand and the Stinksap covering the Marauders vanished. Another wave and the stench was replaced by something like vanilla. "Fifteen points each from Gryffindor and Slytherin, and I hope you've learned your lesson." Marina pinched the bridge of her nose. "I honestly don't think any students have ever lost points this early in the year." She looked at the other students who were watching the spectacle, muttering amongst themselves. "Go on, go back to your compartments," Marina barked, waving her hands at them. The students drifted off, still shooting the Marauders murderous looks.

Severus glared at them before going back into his compartment and slamming the door shut. Lily stomped off down the corridor in the direction of her own compartment. The Marauders followed, intending to go back to their own, but Lily stopped in the middle of the corridor and turned to face them.

"Way to go, you idiots," Lily said, crossing her arms and glaring at them. "We're forty-five points into the negatives and we aren't even halfway there! What were you thinking?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Aw, come on, Evans, we were just having some fun!"

"Well, that fun was paid for by Severus, and your House! Why can't you think before you act?"

"Quite the contrary, Miss Evans," James said, ruffling his hair and making it even messier. "We do think before we act- it's just what comes after is what we don't think about."

Lily threw her hands in the air. "Why did you have to get stuck in Gryffindor?"

"Come on, Evans, you know you love us," Sirius said, grining. Lily's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Shove off, Black, I'm not getting into this right now." She turned on her heel and stomped away.

Right before she reached the door to her compartment, James called, "Evans!" She turned, suspicion written all over her face. "Do you want to go out with me?"

Lily's face reddened. "NO!" she yelled, before wrenching the door open and slamming it so hard that the glass shattered. They heard a muffled curse before the glass flew back together, as though it had never broken.

Sirius turned to James. "Nice delivery, mate, but I think you should have waited when she wasn't so mad at you," he said.

"She's always mad at him, I don't think any time would have been good," Liz offered.

James looked like he'd been hit with a Confundus Jinx. "I can't believe I did that," he muttered.

"Believe it," Remus said, taking James' arm and leading him back to their compartment. He pulled the door open and made James sit down, then took a seat next to him. Sirius sat on James' other side. Liz and Peter took their spots across from the other three. James still looked quite stunned.

"Why did I ask her out?" he mumbled.

"Well," Sirius said, "When a boy asks a girl out, it is for one of two reasons: either he likes her, or his friend wants to ask her out and is too chicken to do so himself."

Remus shot him a look. "Not helping, Sirius."

"Sorry."

James grinned faintly. "I don't know why I did it, I wan't really expecting her to say yes... but..." he sighed. "I think I really do like her, Sirius!"

"Well, look at it this way," Sirius said, the smallest trace of bitterness in his voice. "At least she doesn't like someone else."

"Yet," Peter said. Liz elbowed him.

"Not now, Pete," she muttered. Peter shrugged and settled himself in his seat.

"Look, I don't want to talk about it right now, okay guys?" James said, pushing his glasses further up on his nose.

Remus and Liz exchanged looks. Liz shrugged slightly. "Sure, James," she said casually. "Who wants to play Exploding Snap?"

**xxx**

The train sped northward as the day wore on. A light drizzle began to fall around lunchtime, but the Marauders barely noticed. They were too busy fighting over the last of the sweets when the door slid open to reveal a rather upset looking Alice, accompanied by a friend of hers.

"Hey, Alice, what's wrong?" Liz asked, looing at the girl's red face.

"I'll tell you what's wrong. Gryffindor is forty-five points into the negatives now and it's all your guys' fault!"

"Whoa, hey, you don't need to shout!" Sirius said. "We were just having some fun!"

"Fun that resulted in us being dead last for the House Cup before term even started!" Alice's friend snapped. "If you're going to do stuff like that, make sure you're not caught, at least!"

"All right, we will," James said cheerfully. "Good-bye!" He got up and shut the door in the girls' faces and locked it. They began to bang on the glass, their shouts muffled, but still noticeable. James waved at them, and they glared back. Liz knew there'd be hell to pay from their classmates. After a moment, the girls left, shooting death glares at the compartment.

Remus sighed. "Lily was right. You guys really don't think about the consequences of your actions, do you?" he asked.

"You think they'd be able to take a joke..." James muttered. "I mean, they weren't upset that we lost all those points last year."

"Well, look at it this way," Remus said. "Last year, Gryffindor had already lost the House Cup tournament, so we really didn't do all that much damage. However, this year, term hasn't even started yet and Gryffindor is already behind by a lot of points, so of course they'd be mad!"

James and Sirius exchanged guilty looks. "Well, when you put it that way..." James said. "I guess that means we'll have to be more careful about doing our pranks this year, then!"

Remus sighed. "Of course it does."

Sirius was quite eager to get to the feast- he was starving, despite the massive ammount of candy he'd eaten on the train. As the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmeade Station and the Marauders filed out into the rain, Sirius tipped his head upwards to get a faceful of water. He didn't mind getting wet, but Liz prodded him in the back and said, "Hurry up, I don't want to get soaked!" Sirius rolled his eyes but complied.

They followed the older students to a line of horseless carriages, which Sirius assumed were what took them up to the castle. As he made for the nearest carriage, however, Remus stopped.

"Move it, Moony, you're going to get us all wet," James complained. Remus, however, stood there staring at the space between their carriage and the one ahead of them. Hesitantly, he stepped forward to stroke some imaginary animal.

Sirius and James exchanged alarmed looks. "Uh, Moony, are you feeling alright?" Sirius asked. Remus' head snapped up.

"You can't see them?" he asked, water dripping into his eyes. He shook himself. "No, I guess you couldn't, could you?"

"See what?" Liz demanded. Remus grabbed Sirius' hand and placed it on what felt like an animal's bony flank. Sirius jumped.

"There _is_ something there!" he gasped. "Like a horse, or something..." The invisible animal nudged him with its head. Sirius nearly fell over from the shock.

"Can you explain in the carriage?" Peter asked, one foot on the step. "It's starting to rain harder." At his words, the light drizzle began to get harder. The Marauders scrambled for the open door of the carriage, slamming it shut behind them.

"So what _was_ that thing?" Sirius demanded as the carriage began to move, thudding as it hit bumps in the muddy road.

"If I'm right, it was a thestral," Remus said. Liz raised her eyebrows.

"You've seen someone die?" she asked.

"How would seeing someone snuff it make those horse things visible?" James asked.

"The only people who can see thestrals are people who have seen someone die," Liz said, looking at Remus expectantly. So did the others. Remus fidgeted under their stares.

"When I was-" he looked around as though expecting someone else to be in the carriage with them. "When I was bitten," he whispered, "There was another kid in the ward at St. Mungo's. She had been attacked by doxies, I think, and-" he swalowed. "She died shortly after I was brought in."

Everyone was silent for the rest of the ride to the castle. The grim mood was broken when the carriage stopped and Sirius jumped out, landing with a squelch in the mud.

"Food!" he said happily. The others climbed out after him and hurried to the front doors, puling the hoods of their cloaks up as the rain turned into a downpour.

"I don't fancy having to cross the lake in this weather," Peter said as they slipped on the wet flagstones in the entrance hall. They made to go to the feast, but were interrupted by professor McGonagall, who was looking very angry.

"Black, Potter, Pettigrew, come with me!" she barked.

Sirius grined at Liz. "Save me a seat," he said.

"Assuming you survive the encounter with McGonagall," she said wryly. She gave him a little wave, then disappeared into the Great Hall with Remus.

"Come along then," McGonagall said brusquely, motioning for them to follow her. She strode purposefully up the stairs and led them into her office. "Now then," she said, closing the door behind her. "Miss Greyson-"

"Who?" James interrupted.

"The Head Girl," McGonagall said. "She sent me an owl informing me of the chaos you caused on the Hogwarts Express, along with the deduction of points you managed to recieve."

As the Transfiguration teacher went into lecture mode, Sirius began to tap his foot on the carpet, waiting for her to run out of steam. He wondered if the Sorting was being held without them and sighed. Although he and Regulus weren't as close as they used to be, he still wanted to watch his little brother get sorted, even if it was into Slytherin.

"Now then," Professor McGonagall said. "In addition to your month's worth of detentions from last year, you will each be serving an additional week for this particular incident."

Sirius shrugged, not really expecting anything else. "Can-_May_ we please go to the feast now?"

McGonagall hesitated, probably trying to decide between more lectuing and dinner. "Very well," she said. "I will be informing you of your detentions tomorrow at breakfast."

Sirius, James and Peter hurried out of the office, not bothering to wait for McGonagall. As they crossed the entrance hall, they ran into Snape and Slughorn, who had just come out of the dungeons. The boys exchanged glares. Sirius knew things wouldn't change between them this year, if ever. But then, what fun was life without a greasy-haired rival to torment?

As they entered the Great Hall, everyone looked up from their food. Sirius grinned and waved at them, but was met with cold glares from the Gryffindor table. He sighed inwardly and went with the others to sit with the other Marauders. After the boys had taken their seats, talking gradually began to fill the Hall again. Sirius helped himself to the food, loading his plate with everything he could reach.

"So, what did I miss?" he asked, gnawing on a chicken leg.

"Well, the Sorting Hat sang something cheery about uniting and all that," Liz said around a mouthful of potatoes. She tried to grimace, but the effect was ruined by her bulging cheeks. Sirius tried not to, but he started laughing. He had almost recovered when he saw the indignant look on her face and began laughing again.

"It's good to be back," James said. "Isn't it?"

"Sure is, James," Sirius said. "Sure is."

* * *

**A/N: I made up that stuff about how spells work off the top of my head. It kind of made sense, at least, it did to me. Sorry if you didn't get it/didn't like it, but I didn't exactly have specifics to work with, so... *shrugs***

**I received my first _sort_ _of_ bad review. The fact that I haven't gotten any so far is just astounding, but anywho, it wasn't UNcomplimentary, just constructive criticism harshly written. The funny part is that it was left by an anonymous reviewer about chapter one of part one, so I can't respond to it XD In my defense, I was a new author back then, so cut me a little slack, please?**

**School starts up in a week, and I'll be going back to posting on a Saturday-only basis, because I need to do my homework as well *gags*. I'm taking three AP classes (as a tenth grader!) and the rest are all honors, so I'll probably be juggling a load of work every night. That, plus my kids-only D&D group will be meeting weekly again, _and_ I'm now the Beta for both _theblonde2243_ and_millie-mae,_ so that will make it difficult to just sit and type, so-**

**I'm not complaining, you two, I love Beta reading! By the way, my lovely readers, go and check out their stories, because they are definitely worth reading.**

**Anyway, what I'm trying to say is, there will hopefully (no promises) be a chapter up this Saturday, but next Saturday, there definitely won't be one since I'll be in CHICAGO! So there will be a longer than usual break (Don't shoot me!), but once we're done with that, check in every Saturday for a new update! If, for whatever reason I don't have another chapter up, I was either hit by a bus or just got snowed under with homework. Whichever one is preferable is up for debate :P**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**

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**daisy allie: **that chapter was so awesome! they're so nice to remus :) and that makes me so happyy! cannot WAIT until the next chapter! love this story and made all my friends read it! :):):)

**Well, of course they're nice to Remus, they're his friends! And you seriously made all your friends read it? I hope they liked it! What chapter are they on? I'm curious!**

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**JoeSax: **Yay I feel proud. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

**Hi again! And I will keep working, I promise!**


	6. Professor Lovegood

**A/N: I LOVE MY LOVELY REVIEWERS! I just about had a heart attack when I checked my email... Tuesday? morning and saw my reviews had jumped from 55 to 63! HUGS TO YOU FOREVER! Also earwax.**

**Sorry for the delay, but I do have a good reason: My friends and I will be recreating the Harry Potter books as Minecraft movies. We spent the last few days making Privet Drive, the Burrow, the zoo, the hut on the rock, and touching up a map of Hogwarts, and all that good stuff. We'll be posting chapter-by-chapter on YouTube sometime next month, if things go well. Hopefully.s**

**Also, in response to a review that some of you might benefit from: In England, a jumper is their term for a sweater, whilst in the US, it's a dress. Sorry for any confusion.**

**I would like to mention a person I am currently betareading for, _theblonde2243_. She recently lost a loved one and I want her to know she is in my prayers. This chapter is for you :) Keep that chin up.**

**Thank you to Hearts in Strangeness, because her review made me feel a lot better about the bad one I mentioned last chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I am running out of funny ways to say I don't own it.**

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_When we last left our story, the Marauders had arrived back at Hogwarts and are now in some hot water with ther fellow Gryffindors._

* * *

After the feast, Professor Dumbledore made his usual speech about how there was to be no magic usage in the corridors and that Screaming Yo-yos were now banned from Hogwarts, then sent them off to bed.

Liz couldn't believe how tired she was, stumbling a little on her way up to the Gryffindor common room. She hoped Sarah and Victoria weren't in the mood to blame her for the House Points lost, as she didn't think she'd be able to keep from _Rictusempra_-ing them into next week.

When they reached the common room, Liz bade the boys good-night and climbed up the stairs to the second year girls' dorm. She was rather pleased with the fact that she was the first one up that night- it meant she had the pick of the beds. Liz chose the one farthest from the window and began getting ready for bed. After several minutes, Lily, Sarah and Victoria entered the dorm.

"Hi, Liz!" Sarah chirped as she sat on a bed. "Oh, you're growing your hair out? That's neat, I was thinking about getting it cut, but mum persuaded me not to." She flipped her golden tresses over her shoulder for emphasis. Liz rolled her eyes. "How was your summer?"

"Pretty good," Liz said. _Unless you count the scare with the Death Eater,_ she added silently.

"Mum and dad and I went to France to visit my cousins," Sarah began. "We got to see the Eiffel Tower, and the Louvre, and the catacombs- those were so _creepy_- and all the old buildings were so elegant. We also got to see last year's Quidditch World Cup stadium. It was really cool."

"That's nice," Liz said vaguely, pulling her Charms book out of her trunk and climbing into bed. She wanted to read for a little while, but Sarah seemed intent on extracting as much information from her as she could.

"So what did you do? Did you see any of your friends?" Sarah leaned forward, bouncing slightly on her bed.

Liz sighed. "Er, yeah. I actually spent most of last month at James' house."

"So what did you do?"

"Oh, well, you know... hung out," Liz said, trying to avoid specific answers like 'visited a sick werewolf'. She racked her brain for a more suitable answer. "James taught me how to play Quidditch."

"What position? Are you going to try out for the House team?"

_Shut up already_, Liz thought. "Keeper, and no, but James is. He plays Chaser"

"I'm actually thinking of trying out for Chaser, myself," Sarah went on. Liz raised her eyebrows at this newest piece of information. Sarah needed no further prompting. "My cousins make me Chase when we play Quidditch, and I don't think I'm too bad. It would be kind of cool to play, though, wouldn't it?"

"I guess," Liz said. Her stomach knotted. Why couldn't she be good enough to try out? Even ditzy Sarah was probably better than her.

Sarah looked at her for a moment, then lifted her shoulders in a slight shrug and turned away. Liz watched them for a moment, then went back to her book. After a second, though, she looked back up to meet Victoria's accusatory glare. Liz glared back until the other girl looked away.

"You'd better stay out of my hair this year," Liz muttered. "Or you're going to find yourself at the wrong end of a Marauder prank." Liz staed awake reading long after the other girls had fallen asleep, employing the use of the _Lumos_ charm to provide enough light. After some time, her eyes itching from fatigue, Liz whispered, "Nox," and her wand went out.

The sense of isolation was an unsettling one. Over the sumer, Liz had gotten used to her friends' presence, knowing that if she needed them, they were just a few steps down the hallway or a quick jump fom one balcony to another. A thought struck her and she sat up, feeling rather nauseous. What was she going to do on the nights of the full moon? She couldn't exactly go to the Shrieking Shack like Remus. Maybe she could spend those nights in the boys' dorm...

Suddenly, this year seemed like it would be a lot less fun.

**xxx**

Liz woke the next morning, trying to remember why she wasn't in her leafy bedroom at James' house. Oh, right. Hogwarts. Oh! Hogwarts!

She jumped out of bed, shivering as she left the warmth of her quilts. Liz hopped from foot to foot as she pulled her trunk open and began digging through it for some socks. Pulling them on quickly, she then dressed, brushed her hair, and left for the boys' dorm for the usual wake-up routine.

Liz was about to holler for everyone to wake up when she got a better idea. Why not have a little fun while practicing her Charms work at the same time? She pulled her wand out and pointed it at James.

"Rictusempra," she whispered. Nothing happened. "Oh, come on! Rictusempra!" Still, no jet of light, no laughing James. She closed her eyes. _Come on, just pretend he's ticklish. It worked on Remus yesterday._ "Rictusempra!" A jet of light shot from her wand and hissed as it hit James in the chest. He woke up, wheezing with laughter. Sirius rolled over and shoved his pillow over his head. Peter opened his eyes blearily.

"What's going on?" he asked, yawning hugely.

"Stop it, Sirius!" James gasped, rolling on his bed, clutching at his sides. "Stop it!"

"Sorry, not Sirius," Liz said as she ended the charm. James peered at her, then reached for his glasses.

"Thanks," he said sarcastically. "I appreciated it."

"No problem," she said cheerfully.

"Was all that really necessary?" Sirius grumbled, pulling the pillow off his head.

"It'l be your turn tomorrow," Liz said. She frowned at Remus' bed. "Is he still asleep?" she asked, inclining her head in his direction.

"Looks like it," James said, already over his indignancy. He got up, cursing under his breath as his feet touched the cold floor, and made his way over to Remus. He leaned close to the sleeping boy's ear and took a deep breath. "WAKE UP!"

"AAAAAHHHHHH!" Remus yelled, jerking awake.

"Aaaand a good morning to you, sir!" James said, dancing out of the way of Remus' suddenly airborne pillow. Liz caught it deftly and tossed it back.

"Get dressed, breakfast is in five," she said, before turning and leaving.

Liz paced impatiently in front of the fire as she waited for the boys to come downstairs. When they did, after what felt like an eternity, they went to breakfast eagerly. As they entered the Great Hall, Liz couldn't help but notice the hostile stares directed at three certain Marauders. She sighed as she and the others went to their regular seats. A lot less fun year, indeed.

As they were loading up their plates, Professor McGonagall came up to them, her arms loaded with parchments. "These are your class schedules," she said, handing them to the Marauders, "And your detention schedules."

"We have schedules for our detentions?" James saked, unrolling his. "Nice!" He and Sirius slapped high fives. Professor McGonagall sighed.

"I just hope you've matured enough over the summer to keep from having a repeat of last year," she said, before walking away, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like, "And the Chudley Canons will come in first in the leage, too, I supose..."

"Hmm," James said, reading his detention schedule, then referencing Sirius'. "It looks like McGonagall wanted to keep us separate this time, huh?"

"Shame," Sirius said, grabbing Liz's and opening it. "She probably thought we instigated most of it."

"But you did," Remus said, rolling his eyes. "I'm guessing she's split us up." He put his fork down and opened his own schedule. "Filch in the trophy room the first week-"

"Ebony and I have that," Sirius said abruptly. "James got lines his first week... lucky..."

"I got lines, too," Peter said. "Hospital Wing second week, trophy room third, desk scraping fourth, and owlry cleaning fifth."

"That's what I got," James said.

"I have the owlry fifth week too... I suppose that's for the incident on the train," Sirius said.

"So we have the trophy room first, desk scraping second, Slughorn third- oh, great, I'll bet we have to gut salamanders or something- and Hospital Wing fourth. I'm excused for a few days. Oh..." Remus trailed off and checked over his shoulder to make sure no one heard.

"You got the same as us, minus the days off," Liz said, snatching her schedule back from Sirius. She was rather indignant. "How come you guys got lines and not us?"

"Dunno, but I'm guessing McGonagall's going to make us write something either really long, or we'll have to write it a hundred times in five minutes, something horrible like that," Peter said unhappily. "I'd swap you for the trophy room, any day."

"Well, you'll get your turn soon enough, don't worry," James said, folding his detention scedule and opening his classes. "So, let's see.."

Liz pulled open her own schedule to see a first period Defense Against the Dark Arts class, much to her delight. "Very nice."

"I wonder who's teaching it this year?" Sirius said as he returned to his food. "I mean, Dumbledore kicked Dran-shit out, so it's not like he's going to be coming back."

Remus flinched slightly at Dranseau's uncomplimentary pseudonym. Liz squeezed his hand gently before quickly letting go. He gave her a grateful smile.

"So, uh, about the Defense class this year," James began awkwardly.

"Is this about a certain page three ninety-four?" Remus asked lightly. Liz frowned. What was on page three ninety- oh. She shot Remus a nervous look. "Honestly, if you keep bringing that up, someone will suspect something," Remus hissed. "Just drop it, guys. "It's fine, honestly!"

James looked at Liz for help. She shrugged. If Remus didn't want them to worry about something, they would normally be inclined to do the opposite, but Liz could see where he was coming from on this issue.

"If you insist..." James said.

* * *

Remus wanted to smack his friends. They should know he wasn't going to say anything about the course this year! He really didn't want to have to spend a lesson hunched in the back of the room, trying not to draw attention to himself, but it wasn't as though he had a choice! If he acted like everything was normal, people would be less likely to suspect anything.

That was something he really should have learned last year, but things had actually turned out fairly well... aside from his biting Liz.

_Don't think about it,_ he thought as the Marauders got up to go to classes. _No, don't think about how you could have condemned her to a life of torture and predjudice- crap, I'm thinking about it._

Although the Marauders had thought they'd learned most of where things were in the castle, it still took them a few wrong turns to remember where the Defense classroom was. They took their usual seats, eying the woman in the front, who was writing on the blackboard. Her back was turned to them, but she had a slight build, rather like a pixie, and her dirty blonde hair fell almost to her waist. She was wearing a sarong, for some strange reason.

"Five galleons says it's another nutcase like Dran-shit," Sirius muttered under his breath.

"I second," Liz said quickly.

"I think she'll be okay," Peter said. "Five galleons says she's nice."

"Five galleons, nutjob," James said. "Moony?"

"I'm not betting," Remus said, feeling his cheeks heat up. He didn't like to remind the others that he didn't have money to waste by gambling.

"But-" Sirius said.

"Drop it, Sirius," James and Liz said at the same time. "Jinx!"

Before an all-out jinx war could commence, the bell rang and the teacher turned to face the students. She appeared to be nearing middle age, and had big blue eyes that were filled with a strange, dreamy expression. Remus began to think that Peter was going to be fifteen galleons poorer before five minutes had passed.

"Good morning, class," the woman began. "I am Claire Lovegood, or, in your case, Professor Lovegood. Professor Dumbledore asked me to come teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, but of course, that should be obvious, since I'm the only adult in this classroom!" She beamed at them. Remus and Liz exchanged looks.

"Pay up," James muttered.

"Give it some time," Peter protested. "She might just be nervous."

"Now then, I'm going to seat you all alphabetically, so I can learn your names more easily. Later on in the year, I'll let you sit where you want."

Peter looked at them. "See? Nice?"

"Shut up."

"Now then," Professor Lovegood said, summoning a piece of parchment to her. "Elizaberth Auberey?"

Liz sighed, collected her things and trudged to the seat indicated by the teacher.

And so began the ardurous task of switching seats. Once the class was settled, Professor Lovegood vanished the scroll, then said, "Now then, a little bit about me: I'm a naturalist. I spend most of my time in Africa, looking for monorians. For those of you who don't know, a monorian is an unusual reptile, which has wheels instead of legs. It is thought to be nonexistent by most, but my team and I have seen lots of evidence that this fabulous creature does exist!"

Sirius twisted in his seat to shoot a questioning look at Remus. He shrugged. He'd certainly never heard of a monorian.

"Some of you might be wondering why I am wearing a sarong," Professor Lovegood continued. "It's actually not a sarong, that's an Asian garment. What I am wearing is actually called a _kanga_ and it is worn by women throughout eastern Africa. I fell in love with the style several years ago, and don't see any reason why I shouldn't wear it."

Remus and Sirius looked at one another. Sirius twirled his finger around his temple, mouthing _crazy_ as he did so. Remus grinned and Sirius turned back to the front.

Professor Lovegood spent the rest of the class talking about her plans for the year, assigning them to read chapter one and to be ready to answer questions on it the next class. When the bell rang, the students left quickly, chattering about the weird new teacher.

"Okay, Peter, you owe me, Sirius, and Liz five galleons each," James said as soon as they were in the corridor.

"No I don't," Peter protested. "She's crazy, yes, but she's also nice, so we owe each other nothing!" He grinned triumphantly at them.

"He has a point, you know," Liz said, shrugging. "But to be fair," she said as James opened his mouth to protest, "Maybe we should wait until the end of the year to collect the bets."

"Okay," Sirius said, shrugging. "I can wait."

James checked his schedule, then grinned at Remus. "We have potions next."

Remus sighed. "Greaaaaat."

"Oh, cheer up," Sirius said, slinging one arm over James' shoulders and the other around Remus. "How bad could it be?"

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**A/N: Before you shoot me for using Luna's surname, I will explain here: Claire Lovegood is Luna's great-aunt; Xenophilius' aunt on his father's side. And yes, she's an OC. Luna became a naturalist to follow in her great-aunt's footsteps, at least, that's what my story had decided. Make sense now? Cool. Anyone who can guess why I picked Claire will be awarded ten points to their House of choice! If I got the information about the kangas wrong, I apologize. I did try to research it.**

**So, I'm sorry my epic readers/reviewers, but I won't be posting another chapter until Saturday, the 18. I'm moving onto a Saturday posting schedule, and since I'll be at comic-con, *happy squeee!* I won't have the time, inclination, or materials to write. I'm not giving up on this, because that would be crazy, not to mention really mean. (Siriusly, with fifteen stories planed out for Ebony/Moontouched, that would be nuts to quit!) I'm just taking a mini-vacation.**

**Oh, yeah, for those who haven't heard, I have a spinoff series to Ebony planned out called Moontouched, set in Harry's time. No more info than that, but :D**

**Keep those reviews coming, and I'll be updating- well, not soon, but I will be!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**

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**daisy allie: **this was an awesome chapter! most of my friends are about half way through part one, and one i just read this chapter with. they all love it! :) can't wait for chapter 6! good luck for school and have fun in chicago!

**Thanks! I'm glad they like it, and tell them hi from 'that author' :P And thanks again!**

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**JoeSax: **Seeing as you are fond of your (...breaks into song...) Back to Hogwarts! Hogwarts!... I think I might write And compose music for it.

I LOVE THE STORY. Remus and Ebony perfectly described. It reminds me a lot of The Marauders, by EvelynWn but the spotlight on Remus and Ebony, not James and Sirius. THE MOST EPIC FANFICTION EVER!

**Wow, would you really? That would be extremely cool :) I've read that story too! I loved it and am actually rereading it right now :P I'm glad you (and everyone) like it so much!**


	7. The Smug Club

**A/N: So, yeah, I know it's not the eighteenth- it's EARLY! Blah blah, promises and whatnot. In the words of James Potter: Promises and rules were made to be broken. Okay, maybe he didn't say that (yet) but I bet he did at some point in his life! Anywho, I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this :) And just so you know, I'm working already on chapter nine and have decided to do away with the Saturday-only schedule. I can't promise updates once a week, minimum, but I can try.**

**Funny thing about this chapter- it actually has very little from Liz's PoV, which I kinda like. *shrugs* And I just realized that in this year, the first of September would have been a Friday... which means their classes are taking place on a Saturday. Oops. LOL**

**I think I was about ready to faint when I saw I'm only 10 reviews away from 100 and it's only six (real) chapters. I love that soooo much! **

**S****o anyway, the con was awesome, _tons_ of people asked me for my picture (there was a memorable incident when a cosplayer of Voldemort and I staged a duel- it was amazing.) and sorry Draco fangirls, but Tom Felton isn't as hot in real life as he is in the movies. Shame... We did run into Lou Ferrigno (sp?) in the hotel restraunt, which was pretty neat. He's the guy who played the origional Hulk on TV. Ring any bells? No? Alright then.**

**This chapter is dedicated to wyverndragon, because they were nice enough to put up with me :P You know what I'm talking about!**

**And without further delay, I present chapter eight! And before you complain, I didn't misspell Slug Club- it's suposed to be Smug.**

**Disclaimer: Wouldn't it be hilarious if I was JKR posting fanfiction to see what happens? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH AHAHAHAHA but nope XD**

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_When we last left our story, the Marauders had just been released from DADA with their new teacher, Professor Claire Lovegood (named for Clair de Lune, by the way) and are on their way to what promises to be an interesting second class..._

* * *

Sirius dragged a complaining Remus all the way to potions, James, Liz, and Peter lagging behind. Sirius couldn't figure out why Remus hated potions so much- it wasn't like potions were difficult or anything. Then again, it had been Remus' lowest score on his exams, so maybe that was it.

In the meantime, however, he had a class to get to, a Snape to bother, and a letter from Andromeda to read later, stuffed into his pocket. He'd gotten it the night before, when they had been getting ready for bed, and he had yet to read it. If Remus didn't pick the pace up, though, he'd wind up having to read the letter at lunch. Sirius would have read it in Defense class, but if he were to be honest with himself, he'd simply just forgotten.

"Come on, Sirius, class doesn't start for another five minutes," Remus moaned.

"Moony, Moony, Moony," Sirius said in a grandfatherly tone, "If you don't want to learn, you won't learn at all!"

"Riiiight," Remus said, rolling his eyes. "Look, I know I'm not the best at potions, but I don't hate the subject- it's the teacher I don't like."

Sirius didn't stop dragging Remus along, but he did stumble a bit. He silently cursed himself for not realizing it before. Slughorn didn't like Remus. Remus was bad at potions because he didn't like Slughorn, and Slughorn disliked Remus because Remus was a werewolf. Sirius' opinion of Slughorn dropped quite a bit right then.

"Sirius, wait up!" James yelled as the boys rounded a corner and fell out of sight. Sirius sighed and obligingly slowed to a walk, but didn't stop. Footsteps echoed around them as the other three ran to catch up with them. After a moment, James, Liz and Peter came sprinting around the corner, out of breath, and slowed as well to keep pace with Remus and Sirius.

"Honestly," Liz said, rolling her eyes. "Not all of us have your limitless energy, Sirius!"

"I know," Sirius said. "It's fun to see how long you can keep up with me, though." His heart wasn't in the banter, though, and it must have shown on his face when he spoke, since James frowned at him.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

Sirius debated wether or not to tell them when Remus spoke. "Sirius is just upset that Slughorn doesn't like me. It's nothing."

"You didn't know?" Liz asked, sounding surprised. "We thought it was kind of obvious."

"Well, it wasn't," Sirius said indignantly. They descended a flight of stairs that led to the entrance hall, then turned right into the dungeons. The Marauders flattened themselves to the wall to avoid being passed through by the Bloody Baron, then continued on their way to Slughorn's room.

They ran into Lily and Snape as they reached the door to the classroom. The two paused in their conversation as they waited for the Marauders to file through the door, watching them with suspicious eyes. James smiled winningly at Lily as he passed, but all she did was return his smile with a scowl.

"What did I do this time?" James said in frustration as they took their seats from last year.

"maybe it's just you?" Sirius guessed. "I don't know, mate, I don't think I'm the best person to ask for advice about girls." He glanced at Liz, but looked away when Peter nudged him and winked.

The bell rang just then, signifying the end of their conversation. Professor Slughorn stood and faced the class, a hand raised to quiet those who were still talking.

"I want to make it clear now that I will be deciding who your potions partners will be for this year," he announced. A collective groan ran through the class. "Now, now, none of that," he said jovially. He puled a scroll out of his desk drawer and began reading it off. "Elizabeth Auberey and Sarah Clark."

Liz groaned as she picked up her things and moved to the seat Slughorn indicated. "Save me," she mouthed at Sirius. He grinned at her and shrugged apologetically.

James and Lily were paired up, as were Remus and Peter. Sirius was starting to seriously question Slughorn's sanity by this point- he had paired up the three most likely pairs to blow something up in the class- Liz and Sarah because the former couldn't stand the latter, Lily and James for the same reason, and Peter and Remus, because both were pretty lousy at potions. Sirius barely had time to groan when Slughorn said, "Sirius Black and Severus Snape."

Sirius' head snapped up. "What?" he gasped. No- Professor- please- it must be a mistake, a misprint-"

"Although I doubt it's a mistake, I must agree with Black's sentiments," Snape growled. "I don't want to be his partner! He'll try to poison me, or something!"

"Maybe not poison," Sirius muttered, "Though I might accidentally trip and dump something on your unwashed head of hair, and what a shame that would be." Snape shot him a nasty glare, which Sirius returned with equal vehemence.

"Sorry, boys, but my decision is final," Slughorn said, rolling up his parchment. "You'll be partnering with the same person until the winter holidays," he continued in a louder voice, addressing the whole class, "When I may or may not decide to give you new partners."

Sirius' eyes widened. "But-" he said, giving the teacher a pleading look.

"Five points from Gryffindor and Slytherin for failing to folow orders," Slughorn said. "Now sit together or I'll make it fifteen!" His happy demeanor was gone, replaced with a frown. When neither boy responded, he snapped, "Now!"

Galvanized into action, the two moved towards the last empty table and set, or, in Sirius' case, slammed, their books down. Slughorn eyed him, but didn't say anything.

"Let's agree now to say nothing to one another unless it directly relates to the lesson," Snape said curtly, not looking at him.

"Fine, fine," Sirius muttered. As much fun as taunting Snivellus was, he didn't want to have to worry about the greasy git during class. A few untied shoelaces couldn't go amiss, though...

As Slughorn told them how to set up a Laxative Liquid, Sirius accidentally-on-purpose knocked a vial of leech juice to the floor. Apologizing profusely to Professor Slughorn, he grabbed a rag to begin cleaning up. As he ducked under the table, he cleaned up about a quarter of the mess before he dropped the rag, untied Snape's shoelaces, and retied them to the leg the desk. Seizing the rag, he finished cleaning up and dropped the rag in the bin, then went to wash his hands.

By the he returned, Snape had already started on the potion, which just made the whole thing better, in Sirius' opinion. Even though he wasn't bad at potions, far from it, he simply didn't have the patience that was required to brew most potions.

Sirius felt someone staring at the back of his head and turned to meet Liz's gaze. After a moment, she dropped eyes to her potion, her shoulders shaking from silent laughter.

* * *

Liz had seen Sirius tie Snape's shoelaces to the desk and was finding it extremely difficult to keep from bursting into uncontrollable giggles. She couldn't wait for Snape to attempt to move away from the desk. After catching Sirius' eye and grinning, she lowered her eyes to her book, trying to focus on the job at hand.

Sarah actually wasn't as bad as she'd thought. Although the girl might have seemed ditzy at first, she had a real knack for potions and kept up a steady stram of cheerful chatter as she worked. It was a little annoying, but at least it helped pass time.

"So I was talking to Ashley in Transfiguration earlier today and she was complaining that she'd gotten locked out of Ravenclaw Tower because she couldn't figure out the riddle. Isn't that odd? I suppose that in order to get in, the Ravenclaws have to answer a question about something. It certainly sounds much more interesting than just a boring old password."

"I guess," Liz said, her brain whirring. The Marauders would definitely have to look into that- follow a Ravenclaw sometime, perhaps? A Hufflepuff too, of course...After all, they'd have to add all the common rooms to the map, which they had yet to start working on.

"I'm actually looking forward to Halloween this year," Sarah continued, chopping daisy roots to add to the potion. "Will the Marauders be doing anything... special this year?"

Liz laughed. "Do you really have to ask?" Though she kept a steady smile on her face, Liz felt a twinge of apprehension. She and the boys had yet to even begin planning their prank. What on earth were they going to do this year?

Her eyes fell on the potion and she grinned.

Sarah, however, frowned. "I know I can't stop you guys from doing anything, but please make sure that it at least can't be proven that you're the ones who did it, alright? You've already lost us enough points." She held up a hand to stop Liz's protests. "I know it wasn't your fault for the incident on the train, but quite a few people would be, pardon my French, extremely pissed if you lost Gryffindor any more points."

"All right, all right, we'll be careful," Liz promised. Sarah looked dubious but didn't say anything. Liz grabbed a mortar and pestle so she wouldn't have to look at her partner and began grinding rosemary.

From across the room, Snape stood and made for the ingredients cupboard, only to fall over, landing with a thud on the cold stone floor. "BLACK!" he roared. Sirius fell off his stool, laughing his head off. Liz snorted into her hands, fighting to keep her giggles in. Professor Slughorn waddled over to the boys.

"What's going on over here?" he demanded. His eyes fell on the shoelaces and he sighed. Pulling out his wand, he tapped the knots with it, saying "Relashio," as he did so. Snape hastily retied his laces while Professor Slughorn turned to Sirius. "That was not funny, Mr. Black. Five more points from Gryffindor."

Lily, Sarah and Victoria glowered at their Housemate. "Really, Black?" she thought she heard Lily mutter. The redhead abandoned her potion to check on her friend. James grinned at Sirius over Lily's shoulder, but hastily rearranged his features into a neutral expression when she turned to look at him suspiciously.

"That wasn't very nice," Sarah murmured. Liz had nothing to say to this and continued grinding herbs in silence. Personally, she thought it was hilarious, but she'd managed to keep a civil conversation going with one of her dorm mates for awhile and didn't want to ruin it.

Liz glanced over at Remus and Peter to see how they were doing. As the worst potioneers in the class, she was half expecting an explosion from their direction any second now, but nope. Remus'brow was furrowed as he added the flaxweed to the potion, causing it to turn a sky blue color. It wasn't the periwinkle blue color that their books described, but at least it was in the right color range. Peter was being absolutely no help, giggling quietly to himself over the shoelace incident.

She shook her head and went back to work.

* * *

"So, Evans," James said, sorting bundles of flaxweed into what could and couldn't go into their potion. They had been working in silence for most of the class, and only now had James, deciding on what to say to her, worked up the nerve to actually speak. "it's a lovely day, isn't it?"

Lily gave him the evil eye. "It was fine until your stupid friend tied Sev's shoelaces to the desk," she replied cooly.

"Cool," James said, not paying attention to what she'd said. "Want to know how I can make the day get even better?"

"By ceasing to exist?" Lily asked.

"No, by going out with me!" James grinned, his insides jumping. He crossed his fingers under the desk.

"Sod off, Potter," Lily snapped.

"Ooh, rejected again!" Sirius said from behind them. "Tough luck, mate. Does this mean you've finally gotten over the shock of her first 'no'?"

"Sure does," James grinned.

Lily began chopping daisy roots with much more force than absolutely necessary. James wondered briefly if she was pretending they were his neck. What on earth had he done to make her hate him so much?

Class was nearly over by that point, so he began packing his bag while Lily filled a phial with potion and brought it up to Slughorn's desk. When she didn't come back for a minute, James glanced up to see Slughorn talking quietly to her. Lily bit her lip, nodded, and came back to their desk.

"Professor Slughorn wants to see us after class," she said. "Black! Sev!" The two boys looked up.

"What is it, Lily?" Snape asked.

"Professor Slughorn wants to see us after class," she repeated. "Liz and Sarah, too." She left to tell the girls her news.

James and Sirius looked at one another blankly. "What d'you reckon Slughorn wants with us?" Sirius asked.

"More importantly, what does he want with Snivellus?" James asked. They both snickered.

"I can hear you, you know." Snape glared at them.

"We know," James replied. He was answered with a sharp flick in the back of the head. "Ow!"

"Stop being so nasty," Lily snapped.

"Will you go out with me?" he said, and recieved another flick for his troubles. "OW!"

"Don't ask me again," Lily said as the bell rang. Remus and Peter made for the door, but hesitated when they saw their friends were hanging back.

"Go on, guys, we'll catch up with you," James said, making shooing motion with his hand. "Save us seats, alright?" Remus and Peter exchanged glances, but did as they were told.

The six children aproached Professor Slughorn's desk apprehensively. "You wanted to see us, Professor?" Sarah asked.

"Oh, yes, yes, come closer." They shuffled forward a few inches. "Don't worry, you're not in trouble," he said, beaming at them.

"We're... not?" james said suspiciously. "Alright."

"Quite the contrary, actually," Slughorn continued. "No, I actually wanted to ask you if you wanted to join what my older students like to call the Slug Club? I handpick the best students, the ones with potential, like you, and try to... nourish their talents, encourage them."

Snape looked like he wanted to say quite a few things, none of them complimentary, but all he did was say, "No, thank you, sir, but I have better things to do." And with that, he turned and left.

Slughorn stared after the boy in dismay. "Pity," he murmured. "A talent at potions and Defense like that..." shaking his head, he turned to the remaining children.

"The offer's still out to the rest of you," he said. "And if you could convince Mr. Snape otherwise, I'd be _ever_ so delighted- anyway, Mr. Potter-" James started when his name was mentioned. "Son of Charlus Potter, very high up in the Ministry, no? You're the top of your class in Transfiguration, and I hear you're going to try out for the Quidditch team this year?"

James swelled with pride at having been recognized, but before he could say anything, Slughorn had turned to Sirius. "And Mr. Black! Another young prodigy, not to mention the heir to the estates of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black! It's a shame you're not in Slytherin, all your family was, of course..."

Sirius frowned, looking like he was about to hex Slughorn. James grimaced. Talking to Sirius about his family was one of the proven ways to instantly make him mad.

"Miss Evans! A natural at Charms and Potions, and probably the brightest witch in your year! Miss Clark! Another future Potions Master, perhaps, and I believe your father is the Minister's close friend?"

Sarah nodded, shooting Lily a nervous look. Slughorn, completely oblivious, plowed on.

"Miss Auberey, who is the best Defense student of the year, and isn't half bad at Transfiguration! Your mother was one of my favorites!"

Liz's jaw had dropped open slightly, and she turned to James with a look that said, _Can you believe this guy?_ James shrugged.

"I've already asked Ryan Bennett and Ashley Nickels from Ravenclaw, and Melissa Zabrose from Hufflepuff and they said yes, of course," Slughorn concluded. "But this year's batch of Gryffindors are the cream of the crop! I'm certain that you've heard of my Christmas parties, all the older students absolutely _adore_ them. You're welcome to them when you're older, of course, but you have to say yes! So, what do you say?" Slughorn sat back and looked at them expectantly.

After a pause, Lily, smiling uncertainly, said, "Of course I'll join, Professor."

"Splendid, splendid!" he cried. "Are there any other takers? If you decline now, there's always the chance that I'll offer again!" he looked from one face to another.

James made up his mind then and there. If Lily was in, he was in. "I accept," he said. "And so do Sirius and Liz." He glanced at his friends.

"_Excuse_ me?" Liz asked.

"Wait, _what_?" Sirius protested, but Slughorn overrode them.

"Wonderful, of course- Didn't expect anything else- So what about you, Miss Clark?"

Sarah turned red when everyone looked at her. "I- I guess so, but-"

"Excellent!" Slughorn clasped his hands together. "We're having a dinner party the first of October! Nothing formal, you can just wear your usual things, and meet all the others! Nine o'clock, Sunday, first of October, and I'll be seeing you in class. Now, hurry along, I don't want to have you missing lunch!"

Lily and Sarah left, but the Marauders stayed behind. "Professor Slughorn?" Sirius said slowly. "If you invite only the best students, how come Remus isn't here right now? He's much smarter than me or James." He and James glanced at each other. Liz's face was slowly turning red, and a horrible thought struck James.

"it's because he's a werewolf, isn't it?" James said slowly as the pieces came together. "Isn't it?" he repeated louder, when Slughorn didn't answer. His fists clenched.

James resisted the urge to hex the teacher. Although it would no doubt feel good, he didn't want to get suspened, or worse, expelled. Why did Remus have to go through so much because of something that wasn't his fault? How was that fair?

Without another word, James turned and stalked out of the classroom, Sirius and Liz right behind him.

"Thanks a lot, James," Sirius yelled. "Because of Lily Evans, you joined that stupid _Smug Club_, and signed us up for it without even asking! Don't give me that look, I know it's because of Lily! And don't get me started on Slughorn and Re-"

"Shut up!" Liz hissed. "Do you want to let the whole school know?"

Sirius fell silent, looking mutinous. James shrugged uncomfortably. "I'm sorry, you guys, it never occurred to me that you might not want to join!"

"Don't give me that load of hippogriff dung," Sirius snapped. "You gave us 'the look'- you know, the 'do what I say or you'll be pranked worse than Snivellus on hair-washing day' look? Yeah."

James turned to Li for help, but all she did was fold her arms and turn away from him.

"Seriously, why do you guys hate me so much?" he cried, throwing his arms in the air in exasperation.

"Because, in the words of your one true love, you're an arrogant toerag," Liz said without looking at him.

James reached up and ruffled his hair in a very deliberate motion. "Just you wait and see, Lily and I will get married and have a wonderful, happy family, and our children will be famous and successful." He glanced at Liz. "They will, won't they?"

"How should I know?" she demanded, whirling to face him and planting her hands on her hips.

"Uhh, let's think about that," Sirius said as they climbed the stairs leading to the entrance hall. Liz rolled her eyes.

"Shut up, Black," she muttered.

They made their way into the Great Hall for lunch. Remus and Peter, looking very lonely from their seats, waved them over. "What did Professor Slughorn want?" Peter asked as they sat down. Sirius pulled a crumpled envelope out of his pocket and began reading it, ignoring James. Remus frowned.

"Well, we, Lily, and Sarah are now members of the ever-so-popular 'Slug Club'," James said importantly.

Remus' eyes widened a fraction. "My mum told me only the best students are picked for that club- the ones that have what Professor Slughorn considers great potential. Either that, or their families are wealthy, rich, or well-connected."

"Yeah, we noticed," Sirius said dourly as he read his letter, a crease forming between his eyes. He sighed, set it down, and began spooning peas onto his plate, his movements stiff. Remus flinched.

"I'm sorry, Sirius, I didn't mean it like that."

Sirius continued dishing food out, but after a moment, his shoulders slumped. "It's not _your_ fault," he sighed.

"I really am sorry," Remus pressed, looking nervous.

"Alright, you're sorry! Whoop-de-do!" Sirius slammed his silverware down onto his plate with so much force that he dented the gold. Liz and Peter jumped. Stuffing his letter into his pocket and grabbing his bag, he swung his leg over the bench and stormed out.

"Sirius!" James yelled, tripping over his robes in his haste to get up. "Sirius, wait up!"

"Go on, James," Peter said. "We'll get your stuff."

"Thanks," James said as he disentangled his feet and raced after his friend.

_Sirius, what's gotten into you?_

* * *

**A/N: So, yeah, not much to say here, except- please review! I love to hear your guys' thoughts. Only 10 to go before 100!**

**I will reply to anonymous reviewers in the next chapter, mm-kay? :)**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	8. Breaking

**A/N: Haaai guys! And WOW! 103 reviews? And 30 favorites and 51 followers? *does a happy dance* WOWWOWWOWWOWWOWWOWWOWWOW!**

**This chapter's dedicated to GirlSwagg21, because she was my 100th reviewer :)**

**So... uh, yeah. I have nothing more to say except that is anyone else about to die of excitement for AVPSY? I AM!**

**Oh, yes, as (not) promised- blood. Enjoy, midgets. Also, I know I said in my fanfic that they had ties. However, I'm actually using a cross between the movie version of the uniforms, where they have the white collared shirts and ties, and the book versions. So, basically, the robes go over the shirts and ties. Bottoms don't matter, so Snape doesn't wear them, thus allowing his panties to be shown off in part five. Yes, I'm screwing with canon, but that's what fanfiction is all about! Does that make sense? No? All righty then, moving on!**

**Disclaimer: I'm too tired to come up with something witty saying I don't own it. Darn. Also, I don't own the Harry Potter Prequel. You'll see.**

* * *

_When we last left our story, Sirius was in a bad mood. A sad mood. A bad, sad mood. Also, Dr. Seuss is invading Hogwarts._

* * *

"Sirius!" James yelled. "Wait up!" He sprinted out of the Great Hall, ignoring the odd looks he was getting from the other students. "Sirius!"

He caught sight of his friend at the top of the stairs, making a dash for the Grand Staircase. "SIRIUS!" he bellowed. Sirius' stride faltered as he looked back at James.

"Go away," he snapped as he began climbing the stairs. James poured on the speed and managed to catch p to Sirius, grabbing the back of his robes. Sirius yanked them away and kept climbing.

"Come on, what's wrong?" James asked, keeping pace with Sirius.

"Hmm, let me think about that," Sirius said sarcastically. "You got me to sign up for the Slug Club against my will, maybe?"

"Well, what's so bad about that?" James asked.

Sirius stopped dead. James, not expecting it, ran into him. The two boys slipped and tumbled back down the stairs, landing with a thud at the bottom. Luckily, they hadn't gone too far up so they weren't seriously hurt, but James could still feel a nasty lump forming on the back of his head.

"Ow." James winced as he rubbed it tenderly. "A little warning next time would be nice."

"Maybe you should watch where you're going," Sirius retorted.

"I'm sorry, alright?" James said. He meant it in more ways than one.

He and Sirius stood there for a moment, staring at each other warily. Sirius' shoulders sagged and he sat down agains the wall on the landing above the entrance hall.

"It's not _your_ fault," he mumbled.

"Whose is it, then?" James asked, sitting next to him. Sirius hesitated, then he sighed.

"It's my family," he said. "Slughorn only wants me in the Slug Club because I'm 'well-connected', and I'll bet you anything that he'll try to snag Regulus next year as well."

"Well, there's nothing wrong with having a wealthy, influential family," James said. "I should know."

Sirius laced his fingers together and rested his chin on them. "Yeah, but your family is much more forgiving than mine," he said. His hand hovered near his pocket, then slowly, he pulled out the crumpled envelope and handed it to James.

He opened it and began to read.

_Dear Sirius,_

_It's been a while since I saw you- a year, hasn't it been? Anyway, you remember my boyfriend, Ted? Or should I say fiancee! He proposed to me a few days ago and I said yes! Mother won't be too pleased when she finds out- remember how much trouble I was in when I told them I was dating a muggleborn? I still can't believe I managed to escape disownment for that! Anyway, could you do me a favor and check the tapestry when you get home to see if I've been blown off?_

_We're holding the wedding over the winter holidays so you can attend, since you're the only family I want to be there, and we'd love it if your friends could come, too. I know it might be a bit much to ask, but would you be the ring-bearer?_

_Write back when you get this; we have a lot of plans to make and want your RSVP by mid-September._

_Lots of love,_

_Andromeda_

_P.S. What do you think of the names Nymphadora and Elvendork? I like Nymphadora myself, but Ted insists that Elvendork is better since it's unisex. I need your help to make him see sense!_

James looked up from the letter to meet Sirius' gaze. "Elvendork?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. "_Nice_."

Sirius didn't seem to notice what he'd said. "My whole family is a bunch of pureblood egotistical jerks. I mean, my Great-Uncle Alphard is cool, but he's getting on in years and is really long-winded. Now Andromeda's getting married to a muggleborn, which is certain to get her blasted off the family tree and I'll never be allowed to see her again." He wiped his face on his sleeve and James realized Sirius was crying.

"Hey, it'll be alright," James said, reaching out to hug Sirius, but his wrist was grabbed before he could raise it an inch.

"I don't want your pity," he said, turning away.

"What about comfort?" James asked.

"Don't mock me," Sirius snapped. "You don't know what it's like, none of you! Your lives are _perfect_! Look at you, King of the Potter Manor! Look at Liz, who has two perfect parents and a perfect brother! Look at Peter, whose other actually loves him! Look at Remus, who all the teachers adore, who always gets perfect marks, who Liz will actually give the time of day!"

Sirius jumped to his feet, his hands balled into fists. "My mother curses the very day I was born! My cousins are future Death Eaters who spend their time getting me into trouble! My brother is a pampered little prince who everyone loves! He can never do wrong, and if he does, it's blamed on me!"

James leapt up and put his face close to Sirius' anger boiling up inside him. "Liz is a potential target for Death Eaters because of her parentage," he growled. "Peter's father died when he was six, and Remus-" he lowered his voice, but it didn't lessen the tension. "Remus had had to put up with more shit than the rest of us put together. Don't try and pull a pity party on me, because he'll have to deal with his furry little problem for the rest of his life! He's _never_ had the chance to be a normal kid, and you think you're justified in saying he had a perfect life? _You have no right!_"

Sirius drew back for a moment, and James thought briefly that he'd gotten his point across. However, he was proven wrong a split second later when Sirius' fist slammed into his stomach.

James doubled over in pain, kicking out as he did so. He managed to catch Sirius in the shins and the other boy howled. He dived on top of James, both of them swinging wildly. James managed to elbow Sirius in the mouth, which Sirius responded to with a bellow and punched James in the face. James felt his nose and his glasses break as stars erupted in his vision.

Sirius jumped on top of him and the two rolled on the floor, each trying desperately to gain the upper hand. They fell down the flight of stairs that led to the entrance hall, screeching like wildcats.

"You dake dat back!" James roared. "Dake id back, ride now!"

"I meant it!" Sirius yelled as they wrestled. "Perfect- freaking- lives!" He managed to pin James' arms to the floor, but James brought his feet up and kicked Sirius hard in the stomach. The taller boy fell off him and curled up on the floor, trying desperately to suck in air. James lunged for him, a fist raised to continue the assault, when to his surprise, he found he could no longer move.

"That is ENOUGH!" Professor McGonagall yelled. "Forty points from Gryffindor for brawling like a pair of _hooligans_! I'm ashamed to have both of you in my house!"

James struggled to lift himself form the floor, furious with his teacher. "Let me at him!" he yelled. "Let me at him, I'm gonna-" he opened and closed his mouth, but no sound came out. He glared daggers at McGonagall.

"That is _enough_, Potter," she snapped, lowering her wand. A motion behind her caught James' eye, and he realized the Great Hall was beginning to leave. Students were peering around Professor McGonagall, trying to see what the commotion was. "Go back inside," McGonagall ordered. She looked so terrifying that nobody bothered to object.

She waved her wand and James felt his hands and knees come unstuck from the floor. Groaning, he picked himself up and gingerly felt his nose. He withdrew his hand quickly when a jolt of pain prevented further examination.

On the floor next to him, Sirius spat a tooth out and started couging. James felt a flash of satisfaction when he saw that he'd been able to do some decent damage as well.

McGonagall pinched the bridge of her nose. "Pick up that tooth, Black," she sighed. "Potter, can't you do something to stop that nosebleed?"

"I dink id's brogen, Profedder," James said thickly.

"Then it's a good thing we're going to the Hospital Wing. Get up," she ordered. "As soon as Madam Pomferey's fixed you up, you're going to get another week's worth of detentions and a letter home." She sighed, her nostrils flaring. "I've never had more problematic students in my own House before!"

As she was speaking, Sirius had climbed stiffly to his feet. He pocketed his tooth and limped toward the stairs without another word. James couldn't have cared less.

* * *

Liz, Remus, and Peter were about to leave when they heard the shouts and thuds coming from the entrance hall. They didn't think much of it when Professor McGonagall went to investigate until students began trying to leave, only to find themselves shunted back inside.

"What d'you reckon's going on?" Peter asked as they returned to their seats.

"Dunno, but it sounded like a fight," Remus mused. He frowned. "You don't think that was James and Sirius, do you?"

Liz rolled her eyes. "Please- those two? They're like _this_!" She crossed her fingers tightly to demonstrate. "It would take an awful lot to make them fight like that."

Right when she'd finished speaking, Melissa Zambrose, a friendly Hufflepuff in their year with bouncy caramel curls ran up to them. "You'll never guess who were fighting in the entrance hall!" she said, half nervous, half excited.

Liz groaned. "James and Sirius?"

Melissa nodded. "Those other Marauder boys, yeah, they were ;brawling like hooligans', that's what Professor McGonagall said. They looked pretty bad, but I didn't really get to see them before we had to go back in."

Remus sighed. "We'd better get up to the Hospital Wing, then."

"Thanks for telling us, Melissa," Peter said, smiling grimly. Melissa blushed, nodded, and ran back to her friends at the Hufflepuff table, where they began whispering excitedly, glancing over their shoulders at the Gryffindors occasionally.

A slow smile spread across Liz's face as she and the boys began to get up. "Someone has a cruuuuush," she said in a sing-song voice.

"No, it's probably because Moony's here," Peter said thoughtfully. Remus, who had just taken a last sip of pumpkin juice, started coughing and sputtering. Liz frowned, feeling a small stab of jealousy.

"Nooo, I'm pretty sure it was you, Pete," she said. Remus recovered from his coughing fit and elected to lead the way out of the Great Hall.

"Moony."

"You."

"Moony."

"You."

"Moony."

"This isn't funny, guys!" Remus snapped as they ducked behind a tapestry that concealed a shortcut to the Hospital Wing.

"We're not kidding," Peter said, baffled. "I mean, why would Melissa like me?"

"Well, you're funny, and-"

Peter cut him off. "Look, Moony, just because you don't think girls will like you doesn't mean they won't," he said. "I mean, look at E- OW!"

Liz had stomped hard on Peter's foot. "Shut up," she hissed, he face hot.

"What's 'ow'?" Remus asked.

"Nothing," PEter muttered, scowling at Liz. They fell into an uncomfortable silence as they made their way up to the Hospital Wing.

They waited behind the tapestry at the other end of the passageway for their friends to come out. Finally, the Hospital Wing's doors opened and Sirus and James walked out, neither of them speaking to each other. Without a word, they turned right, presumably to go to McGonagall's office.

"Guys!" Liz pushed the curtain aside and ran over to them, Peter and Remus on her heels. "What happened? We heard you two had a fight."

"Sirius was insulting you guys," James said shortly.

"James was being an arse," Sirius growled.

"Tell Sirius he's a bloody git and that I'm not speaking to him," James said.

"Sirius, James says you're a bloody-"

"I heard him!" Sirius yelled. "Now why don't you all go away and leave me alone?" He stalked off down the corridor, not looking back once.

"Was he really... erm..." Remus shuffled his feet.

James sighed. "He was going off on a rant about how all of us had such perfect lives and how his was so awful. I mean, I know his home life isn't exactly wonderful, but he was being such a bloody git-" James cut himself off, breathing heavily through his nose. "I'm still mad at him, but he's under a load of stress. I hope he'll have calmed down by dinnertime." He trudged off after Sirius. "I'll tell you guys what happened later," he called morosely.

Liz and Remus looked at each other. "Is this going to become some sort of ritual?" Liz asked. "I mean, not all of our first days can be this dramatic... can they?"

Remus rubbed his temples. "I dunno, but I certainly hope not."

* * *

Sirius knew he was in the wrong, but at the moment, he really didn't care. None of them knew what it was like to be despised by their families- none of them! It never crossed his mind that Remus' father wasn't exactly what one would call 'loving'.

He simply sat and looked at his lap while McGonagall lectured him and James, accepting his detention silently. Finally, they were released for class, where they sat as far apart from one another as possible. Sirius knew, from the covert glances the others were sending his way, that they were still upset with him. A hot surge of guilt crept into his stomach as he recalled the feeling of James' nose breaking under his fist.

Sirius sighed as he sat down across from James in the Great Hall that night. He fiddled with his spoon for a few minutes, trying to work up the nerve to apologize. However, the food appeared on the table just before he made up his mind, and Sirius seized the excuse not to look at James, promptly stuffing his face. He thought he heard someone let out a tiny sigh, but quickly dismissed it as his imagination.

There was a shuffling of people on the bench and Sirius looked up to see the others inching away from him. He caught Remus' eye and was startled to see accusation staring back at him.

"Guys, what did I do?" Sirius demanded, swallowing his food. "I mean, I know James is mad at me, but you? Seriously, what did I do?"

"I don't know, but it couldn't possibly have anything to do with us having 'perfect lives', Remus said, focusing very intently on cutting his steak, his knuckles white on the knife handle. Sirius grimaced. If Remus was saying stuff like that, they must've been really mad. James must have told them what happened during class.

"I'm-" he took a deep breath. "Look, guys, I'm really sorry about what I said, and-" he looked at James. "I'm sorry I hit you."

"And broke my nose," James added.

"And broke your nose," Sirius added, wincing.

"And my glasses," James said.

"Those too. And cracked a few ribs of yours. But I really am sorry."

James was silent. Sirius twisted his hands in his lap, watching him anxiously. After a moment, James gave a small smile and Sirius' heart leapt.

"It's okay, Sirius," he said. "I know you didn't really mean it. And I'm sorry I knocked your tooth out."

Sirius grinned at him. "I guess I kind of deserved it," he said.

Though the rest of the Marauders' attitudes slowly thawed over dinner, Sirius still got the feeling that they were still mad at him, though he wasn't quite sure why. Sirius ended up going to bed with a seed of anger in his heart, a seed that would begin to grow...

* * *

**A/N: So, yeah, Sirius is having some issues, and will be having some, all throughout this part. (Why do all my stories seem to end with someone being grievously injured?) What? NOTHING! HAHA! *sweat bullets* I said nothing!**

**I would have gotten this up earlier, but I was distracted by an original story that I just HAD to start on :) I'd love to get it published, but... sigh. If I do, I'll tell you guys what book it is so you can read it :) It's about demons and demon fighters. That's all I'm gonna say.**

**Look for the next chapter sometime around Thursday, I guess. And, uh, no anonymous reviews to reply here (Foofooman3 doesn't count- he's my brother. He knows how the series ends. I LOVE dangling stuff over your guys' heads- GAH!). *ducks a flying tomato* I don't FIND this to be very amusing!**

**_Oh, and I need your help_- did the incident with Sirius/Snape/James happen BEFORE of AFTER the O.W.L.S. exam or what? Because I always thought it was in sixth year, but the events on Snape's memories, if viewed as chronological, would say otherwise. The HP Wiki and Lexicon are of no help :( So, do any of you know, or should I just write my version in sixth year?**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	9. Dinner Party of Doom

**A/N: Yeah, yeah, I know it's late, but I'm sorry. There are no excuses except for a bad case of writer's block. Anyway, I'm currently stuck in Ohio for my brother's soccer tournament, and I got my sorry butt stuck in the Air Force Museum almost all day yesterday, and a mall today, and I think I might have carpal tunnel… so, I'll be posting this as soon as I finish typing this up… I probably won't be back until 5 o'clock on the third, which means I probably won't get to tell my boyfriend Happy Birthday in person… D: Ahh, you probably can't tell, but I'm in a pretty bad mood. Grr. And Sirius just died in OotP, so I'm crying on top of it all… ;-; But to make up for the wait, this is a really long chapter, so I hope that makes things better. The emotions kind of came out in an angst-filled chapter, but it does fit with what I have planned for the story, so I kept it.**

**But either way, I brought my Hogwarts robes to wear on the first- it IS a Harry Potter day, after all. For some reason, nobody found this odd… XD**

**Even better- I am now called 'Moony' by EVERYBODY at school. *does a little happy dance* moony Moony Moo-ny! Moony Moony Moo-ny! I LOVE MY NICKNAME! I so got my dog tags stamped with that! (Yeah, I got dog tags today :D not that you care.)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I wouldn't be wasting my time going to soccer tournaments. I'd be writing the Marauders' series or updating Pottermore faster. *facedesks***

* * *

It had been several weeks since Sirius and James had gotten into their fight, and although the others quickly seemed to forget and move on, Sirius' resentment continued to fester. He'd sent back his reply to Andromeda and hoped she'd write back, but no owls came for him at breakfast. Even if she was busy with wedding plans, it still stung whenever one of his friends would get letters and gifts from home, while he, of course, was sent nothing. How hard could it be to pick u a quill and write a quick note? It only served to reinforce his feelings and convince him he was right after all.

The Marauders passed most of September getting used to the school routines and, on one memorable occasion, almost getting caught by several teachers at the Three Broomsticks one Hogsmeade trip. They'd managed to escape by ducking under the table and sneaking out under the invisibility cloak, but it had ben a close call.

The detentions weren't nearly as bad as Sirius had thought they'd be- he found that the time actually flew by pretty quickly by bouncing prank ideas off of Liz. Remus wasn't so keen on participating in the conversations, and Sirius felt a small flash of satisfaction when he realized the detentions were practically a two-hour per day time when he had Liz all to himself… to an extent. Whenever he'd let his hand brush against hers while polishing trophies, or sorting potion ingredients, Remus would give him the evil eye, which put a bit of a damper on his mood.

Sirius and Liz had tried to explain to Slughorn before, during, and after several classes that they hadn't actually wanted to join the Slug Club, but each time, the professor would simply chuckle and remind them that the diner party was in a few days, then send them on their way. It annoyed them both that he seemed incapable of taking 'no' as an answer, but it seemed impossible to convince him otherwise. Finally, Remus, growing tired of their incessant complaining, told them (in a hollow sort of voice) to just go and try to have fun.

Meanwhile, James had some problems of his own- trying out for Quidditch. He spent every possible moment on the Quidditch pitch, shooting hoop after hoop and perfecting his technique. occasionally, he'd drag Liz out to Keep for him, leaving the others behind in the common room. Not once did he ask Sirius if he wanted to train together, or even inquire after how his own training was going.

Finally, Sirius had had enough. "I'm going too," he announced one afternoon as James crossed the common room with his broomstick over his shoulder.

"Oh, okay," James said, looking a little surprised at Sirius' harsh tone. "Liz? Are you coming?"

Liz looked up from the table, rolls of parchment scattered around her. "Sorry, James, I really need to get this Charms essay finished, hopeful before tomorrow." Her tone was rather sharp.

"Why tomorrow?" Sirius asked, his curiosity piqued. "Flitwick said it's not due for a week!"

"Yeah, but think about what happens in a week," she said darkly. Meeting his blank stare, she surreptitiously lifted her wrist and touched the bite mark.

"Ohh…" Sirius felt stupid. He should have really should have been paying better attention. "So, does that mean Moony's in the Hospital Wing now?" he asked, looking around for Remus. He'd left about an hour ago and Sirius hadn't been paying attention to where he was going.

"He's in the library," she said vaguely, shifting some parchment aside. "Trying to do his homework, too."

"…oh." Sirius wished he could think of something more interesting to say to her. "Anyway, James, are we going or what?"

"Yeah, sure," James said. Sirius darted upstairs to retrieve his Comet 240 and Beater's bat, then joined his friend at the portrait hole. "Bye, guys," James called over his shoulder. Peter waved to them cheerfully as they left.

"So," Sirius said as they walked through the castle. "Been… training… hard?"

"Oh, yeah," James said enthusiastically. "So, I've been coming up with some new moves that I think David-"

"David?" Sirius asked, frowning at the unfamiliar name.

"David Wood- Patrick Wood's brother? He's a sixth year, plays Beater?"

"Oh, yeah," Sirius said, realization dawning on him. "He's the one who got a tail last year, right?"

"Yeah, him. Anyway, I'm pretty sure he won't be able to help being impressed at the stuff I've come up with. They're so cool- there's this one move where you actually pivot the broom in midair so it whips around to give your throw more momentum- want me to show you? You could probably use it for Beating purposes."

Sirius bristled. So James thought he could play the other positions besides Chaser? The stuck-up prat. "No, thank you," he said coldly. James looked at him, obviously feigning confusion.

"Is something wrong?"

"Nope. Just great," Sirius said bitterly.

* * *

Liz rubbed her forehead, frowning at the questions before her. Although it was only the first night of the Dark Week, as she'd come to call it, her headache was really staring to hurt. After a while, she closed her books and told Peter she was going upstairs.

Liz managed to fall asleep quickly, but woke up after what felt like only seconds later. Even worse, her headache hadn't gone away while she slept. She checked the clock- she still had a little over an hour until curfew, so she might as well head on down to the Hospital Wing while she still could.

Peter must have gone up to the boys' dorm, because the common room was now empty save for Lily and Sarah, who were bent over a table in the corner. She nodded to them on her way to the portrait hole.

"Hey, Liz?"

Liz paused, one foot raised to climb through. "Yeah, Lily?"

Lily and Sarah waved her over to their table. "Do you want to do some Charms homework with us?" Lily asked.

Liz bit her lip, knowing she could really use the help, but her head throbbed painfully, compelling her to refuse. "No, thank you," she said, rubbing her temples. "I was actually going to go to the Hospital Wing- I have a pretty bad headache. Maybe later, though?"

"Alright," Sarah said. "Hope you get better."

"Thanks," Liz said, going back to the exit. As the Fat Lady swung shut, she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Liz?"

"Remus!" she cried, spinning around. "You startled me!"

He winced. "Not so loud, please?" he said.

"Sorry," Liz mumbled. "Headache?"

"Yeah, I left the library a few minutes ago, and I was going to go up to the Hospital Wing, but I thought I might come and check on you before I went."

Despite her headache, Liz couldn't help but smile. "I was just headed up there myself, actually," she said, "But thanks."

"So, none of the guys offered to come with you?" he asked as they began walking.

"Well, I think Peter's up in the dorm right now, and James and Sirius went to the Quidditch pitch to practice about an hour after you left," Li said. "I don't think they're back yet. Those two are dead-set on being picked for the team this year."

"I noticed," Remus said as they passed an ugly statue of a hump-backed witch. "So, got any homework done?"

"Not really." Liz gnawed on her cheek, trying to thick of something to talk about. She was very aware that it was just the two of them… alone… in the corridor. "Er, did you?" She mentally kicked herself.

"I got my essay about hinkypunks finished," Remus said. he gave a small grin. "Probably not my best work, though."

"Yeah."

"Yeah."

They were silent for a long while. Just outside the Hospital Wing, Liz stopped. "Does it ever get any easier?" she asked.

"Not really," Remus admitted. "But you just have to learn to deal with it as best as you can, y'know?"

"Not really," Liz said. They laughed weakly.

Liz shuffled her feet. Remus had come to see if she needed to go to the Hospital Wing, even though he probably felt much worse than she did. She fiddled with her collar, glancing at him uneasily. Her stomach dropped to her toes as she realized that maybe… just maybe… she liked Remus? Liz's knees buckled from the shock, and Remus managed to catch her before she hit the floor. Liz gulped when she realized his face was just inches from hers.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his blue eyes filled with concern. Liz stumbled backward, her cheeks burning.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she stammered.

"Erm, shouldn't we be going in? There's the curfew and all…" Remus said after an awkward pause.

"Right," she said, her face heating up even more. "Right, we should…" Remus didn't seem to notice her stammering, turning around and pushing open the door of the Hospital Wing without a backward glance.

"Hello, dears," Madam Pomferey said when she spotted them. "Headaches?"

Liz's face reddened, not from embarrassment this time, but from shame. Remus, however, took the question as though it was no big deal. "Yes, Ma'am," he answered.

Madam Pomferey disappeared into her office and reemerged with two goblets of potion. "Drink up," she said.

Liz drained hers quickly, sighing with relief when she felt her headache ebb away. Remus, however, grimaced. "Don't you have anything stronger?" he asked. "This stuff never gets rid of it completely."

Madam Pomferey sighed. "I'm sorry, dear, I can't give you any more than that unless I wanted to poison you. That there should help,though, so don't just stand there looking at it!"

Remus sighed, but did as he was told. Once he'd handed the goblet back, the matron turned to Liz. "You'll be spending the night in the night in the Hospital Wing, by the way." Liz didn't need to ask what night. "Don't worry, dear, you'll be fine."

"Thanks," Liz said. She felt slightly guilty at that- Remus had to worry abut a lot more than she did at the full moon.

"Come back if you need anything," Madam Pomferey instructed.

"We will," they promised. Once outside the door, Remus let out a heavy sigh and leaned against the wall, one hand supporting his head, the other hanging limply by his side.

"Are you okay?" Liz asked.

Remus shook his head slowly. "My head still huts. It really- it sucks!" Liz was startled by his outburst. When Remus' shoulders began to shake, she looked closer and realized he was crying. Liz hugged him spontaneously, resting her chin on his shoulder.

"Hey, it'll be alright," she said.

Remus froze for a second, then he gently pried her arms off and stepped away, his cheeks red. "Look," he said, "I appreciate that you're trying to make me feel better, but you have to stop."

"Why?" Liz demanded. "If you think you're being noble-"

"it's not that," he said, running his fingers through his hair. "It's just- I don't want anyone's pity."

Liz fumed. "Now you're starting to sound like Sirius!" she snapped. "Oh, woe is me, everyone hates me-" Remus flinched, and Liz instantly felt guilty. "I- I'm so sorry," she stammered, "I didn't mean it like that, I swear-"

Remus' shoulders slumped. "It's okay," he mumbled.

"No, it's not," Liz said. "I'm so sorry, Remus, but I just want you to know that no matter how bad things seem right now, I promise everything will be much better this tim next week. Okay?"

Remus sniffed, trying to be discreet about it. Liz took his hand, smiling reassuringly. He didn't return the gesture, but he allowed her to lead him back up to Gryffindor tower.

"Leviathen," she said to the Fat Lady, who mumbled something under her breath before swinging forward to admit them.

James stopped them by the staircases. "Sirius is in a really bad mood right now," he said, addressing Remus, "So you might want to be quiet."

"What happened this time?" Remus asked wearily.

James shook his head, looking baffled. "I have no idea. One second, I'm talking to him about Quidditch, the next, he's refusing to speak to me for the whole practice!"

Liz shrugged. "Beats me. James, do you mind? I'm really tired and I'd like to go to sleep before another headache comes on."

"Oh, sure. Good-night." James moved out of her way, clapping her on the shoulder as she passed.

"Night, guys." Liz tried to give Remus a comforting smile, but he didn't seem to notice. She sighed unhappily and climbed the stairs, resigning herself to another week of torture.

* * *

Remus opened his eyes, but quickly shut them again. The light filtering into the Shrieking Shack wasn't that bright, but it really hurt his head. He could feel something cold and sticky underneath him and had to suppress the bile rising in his throat.

It was absolutely freezing on the old wood floor. Remus tried to curl up into a ball for warmth, but screamed when he felt a blinded pain shoot from his ankle up to his head.

He thought he could hear footsteps slapping against the floor below him. Was he on the second floor, or was the running person in the tunnel? He wasn't sure. Either way, the person- Madam Pomferey? would find him soon, and hopefully, they'd be able to help.

A door creaked as it was pushed open, and Remus squinted, barely able to make out the blurry form of Madam Pomferey. The nurse covered him gently with a blanket- he hissed as it scraped against a wound in his side- then he was aware of a feather-light sensation as she lifted him carefully. He howled as his injured foot bumped against the floor.

"It's alright, Remus, dear, everything's alright," Madam Pomferey said soothingly. "I'm just taking you up to the castle, just go back to sleep." She continued to speak to him, but her words blurred together. It was so hard for Remus to focus...

Remus must have drifted off, because the next thing he knew, he was ling in the Hospital Wing, the Marauders standing over him.

"How- how're you feeling?" James asked nervously.

Remus stretched slowly, feeling his back pop. "Pretty good, actually, all things considered." He frowned. That didn't seem to match up with what he remembered from earlier. "What time is it, anyway?"

His friends glanced at one another. "It's four in the afternoon... of Friday," Sirius said.

Remus' jaw dropped open. "F-friday?" he stammered. He'd been out for five, almost six, days? "What happened?"

"Well..." Liz bit her lip. "It was... bad."

"Thanks for clarifying," Remus muttered. "How bad?"

Wordlessly, Peter pointed at the foot of the bed. Remus felt the blood drain from his face. His foot...

Mentally bracing himself for the worst, he looked at his feet and felt his stomach turn over.

He was lying on top of the sheets, a blanket draped over his body so that his feet remained uncovered. His left foot looked the same as always, but there was now a dark red welt encircling his right ankle. On closer inspection, he realized it was actually another bite mark. Gingerly, he reached down and touched his ankle, quickly drawing back with a hiss as the pain flared.

"Are you okay?" James asked, biting his lip.

"Yeah..." Remus was shaken. "Do you know what happened?"

Liz took a deep breath. "Madam Pomferey brought you in not long after sunrise. It was-" she faltered, blinking hard, and Remus realized she was trying to keep tears from spilling out. "It was horrible. She had to keep stopping to clean up the blood. You were lucky you didn't bite through the bone- Madam Pomferey had a hard enough time trying to close the cuts."

Remus felt his stomach churn. He leaned over the bed- Sirius barely had enough time to leap out of the way- and threw up.

"Ew," Peter said, wrinkling his nose.

"Remus?" James asked, his hands fluttering as though he was uncertain of what to do.

"Madam Pomferey?" Remus croaked. It wasn't the first time he'd thrown up after a rough night.

"I'll go get her," James said, jumping up. Remus sank back against his pillows, feeling exhausted. he closed his eyes, but he could still feel his friends' nervous gazes trained on him.

James returned, dragging a rather hassled-looking Madam Pomferey by the sleeve. Seeing the splatter of vomit on the floor, she pulled her wand out, flicked it, and caused the mess to vanish. Putting it back in her apron pocket, she took one of Remus' hands. "How are you feeling, dear?"

"Good, except for..." Remus pointed in the general direction of his foot, not wanting to look at it again.

"That was rather nasty," she admitted. "I'm afraid you'll have to stay in here for a few more days, since I'm not sure how much has healed on the inside."

"The inside?" Remus echoed, beginning to feel nauseous again.

"You managed to crack the bone,"Madam Pomferey said.

Remus grimaced, but was grateful for the information. Madam Pomferey used to be reluctant to tell him the extent of his injuries, until he told her of one awful night where he'd managed to gouge deeply enough into his side to scrape several ribs. After that, she became much more willing to tell him what the damage was like.

Remus suddenly realized what the nurse had said. "Wait, a few days? I can't wait that long! I'm already so far behind in my classes!"

"Don't worry, we got your stuff for you," Sirius said. "We even took it in shifts to do notes during History of Magic, so you owe us big time." Liz swatted him on the shoulder, but he just grinned.

"But- the other kids will be wondering where I'm at!" Remus protested.

"We told them you had to go visit your sick grandmother," Liz said, shrugging.

"But-" Remus was running out of excuses, and he knew it. "If I'm gone any longer, people might...start to suspect...something?"

"I told you, we already have that one covered," Liz said.

Remus looked pleadingly toward Madam Pomferey. "I feel fine," he insisted. "I swear I'll be careful and not walk anywhere unless I absolutely have to."

Madam Pomferey looked as though she was going against her better judgement, but she said, "very well, Mr. Lupin, but I don't want you doing _anything _other than staying in bed and resting."

_Because I haven't already done enough of that over the past six days, _Remus thought bitterly. "Yes, ma'am," was all he said, though. Carefully, so as not to jolt his injured leg, he sat up slowly.

"Uh, Remus?" Liz said, pinking.

"What?" he asked as he made to push the blankets off.

"Clothes?" she squeaked, rapidly going from pink to scarlet. Remus froze, utterly relieved she'd said something before he did anything...revealing... but at the same time, mortified that he'd forgotten.

"Er, right! Where are they?" he asked, flushing.

"Right there on the bedside table," Madam Pomferey said. "I'll put up the curtains so you can get dressed."

Once Remus had his robes on, he carefully pulled on his socks and shoes, then slowly stood up, putting all his weight on his left leg. Slowly, he tested out the other.

"Ahhh..." He had to grit his teeth to keep from screaming.

"Everything alright in there?" James asked.

Remus had to take a deep breath before replying. "Yeah, just great." He tried putting weight on his bad leg and found that by clenching his fists and jaw, he could ignore the pain, to a certain extent. Limping around the curtain, he forced his face into a smile for his friends. "See? Great."

"Right..." James said, eyeing him dubiously. "Well, if you're feeling so great, then how about you walk over here?"

Sirius folded his arms expectantly as Remus gulped. He examined the distance between himself and James, gauging if he could make it without showing any signs of pain. Slowly, he took a step, then another, forcing himself to ignore the fire shooting up his leg. After too long, he stopped, glaring up at James defiantly. "See? I'm fine. I can walk."

"Whatever you say, Moony," James said, "But I think we should probably carry you, at least part of the way back."

Remus opened his mouth to say he didn't need any help, but realized he would be stupid to say so. The fact that Madam Pomferey was willing to let him go in the state he was in was a miracle in itself. "Okay," he sighed.

"Come on, then," Sirius said, gesturing impatiently. He lowered his voice. "You'll have to walk out of here by yourself- there's no way Pomferey will let you go otherwise- but after that, James and I can help you." He winked.

"Thank you," Remus whispered gratefully as Madam Pomferey came over.

"Are you sure you're fine?" she asked.

"_Yes,_" Remus said firmly.

"Then take care, Mr. Lupin, and I'd better not see you back in here before next month!"

"Of course not," Peter said. He grinned at the matron. "Don't worry, miss, we'll take good care of him."

"You'd better," she said sternly.

The walk out of the Hospital Wing was agony, but Remus forced himself to keep going. Once the doors had shut behind him, his legs gave out. He would have hit the floor if it hadn't been for James and Sirius.

"Thanks," Remus gasped.

"No problem," James said. He and Sirius each wrapped an arm around Remus' waist, supporting him as he hopped on one foot along the corridor. Liz and Peter fell into step on either side of them.

"You really had us worried, mate," Sirius said. "You just wouldn't wake up, no matter what Madam Pomferey tried..."

"I just needed to heal," Remus said, "But right now, I really need to just be out of the bloody Hospital Wing. Merlin knows I spend too much time in there."

"Your furry little problem must not be the easiest thing to deal with, huh?" James asked somberly as they struggled up a staircase.

"What was your first hint?" Remus asked sarcastically.

"Do you want me to get the list, or just say them off the top of my head?"

"Ha. Ha ha. Also, ha." Remus sighed. "I'm sorry you guys have to put up with this."

"Don't be," Liz said. "We're your friends- it's our duty to help each other out. Leviathen."

Remus studied the portrait hole warily. "Um…"

"Here." Liz climbed up, then turned, gripped Remus' hands and pulled as James and Sirius pushed Remus up by his knees, allowing him to crawl through into the common room. Peter scrambled up behind them. They lay, gasping for breath, just inside the entrance. A few older students looked at them curiously, but quickly lost interest.

"Geez, Moony," Sirius panted, "You need to cut down on the chocolate!"

"Not now, Sirius," James muttered. Sirius glared at James, refusing to answer him. Remus wondered if they were still fighting.

After navigating the staircases up to the boys' dorm, Remus collapsed on his bed, moaning when he jostled his foot.

"Are you okay?" Liz asked, whitening.

"Fine," Remus said through clenched teeth. He gripped his leg in his hands and moved it onto the bed, biting his lip to keep from making any noises. The others watched him anxiously.

"So…" Remus said, in an effort to direct the attention away from him, "How did your night go, Eb?"

"Not as badly as the first time," she said, a hint of pride in her voice. "I only threw up twice."

"That's good," Remus said, perking up a bit.

They were silent for a little bit, then Sirius said, "Will you be alright on your own tomorrow, Moony? Because James, Liz and I have to go to the stupid diner party, and Peter's still got detention. I tried to get McGonagall to keep us from going, but she told us we were getting the night off." He looked physically ill at the thought.

"I'll be fine," Remus said in a falsely cheerful voice. "Seriously, you guys, it's cool. Go have fun."

They spent the afternoon helping Remus catch up on his homework, acting friendly toward one another for his sake, but it didn't slip his attention that James and Sirius didn't speak to one another unless absolutely necessary. When it was time to go to dinner, Remus grabbed Liz's arm and held her back.

"Do you know what's going on with those two?" he asked quietly, nodding at the boys' retreating backs.

Liz sighed. "I haven't been able to get a whole lot out of them, but from what I can tell, Sirius is mad at James from the fight our first day back, and I think he's upset about James' obsession with Quidditch."

"Those idiots," Remus muttered. "Letting a silly sport get in the way of their friendship…" he shook his head. "Bring me some chocolate?"

"Of course," Liz grinned. "If I don't eat it all myself!"

"Go on, then!" Remus laughed as Liz waved t him, then hurried after the boys. Feeling rather dejected now that they'd gone, he returned to his homework. He still had a lot to do.

* * *

Liz frowned at her reflection in the mirror. "I dunno, Lily, it looks weird." She reached up to fiddle with the sparkly barrette Lily had pinned to her hair, but Lily slapped her hand away.

"You look fine," she said, throwing her own hair into a messy plait. Sarah was busy curling her hair around her wand, while Victoria watched the three of them haughtily.

"Professor Slughorn said to just wear our uniforms," Liz protested weakly.

"That doesn't mean we can't do something nice with our hair," Lily said.

"Besides, I thought James was going to be there?" Sarah asked, smiling as Lily's face slowly began to match her hair color. "Of course, you'd want to look nice."

"This has nothing to do with Potter," Lily snapped. She took a deep breath, then grinned shyly. "Actually… Ryan Bennett will be there…"

"Ooh, Bennett?" Sarah giggled. "He's pretty cute."

"He's got pimples," Victoria said.

"Everyone gets pimples," Sarah said dismissively. "Besides, he's really smart."

"So is that Sirius Black," Victoria said.

"I thought you fancied Remus?" Lily asked, with a half glance at Liz. Liz clenched her fists, but relaxed slightly when Victoria shrugged.

"He's just… weird. He's always in the library, who wants a boyfriend like that? And he's got those ugly scars on his face…"

Liz scowled at the floor, but breathed a sigh of relief to hear her dorm mate was no longer interested in Remus. Poor Sirius would have a hard time getting rid of this girl, though.

"I'm going to go get James and Sirius," Liz said. "Lily, I'd take the plait out if you don't want to encourage James…"

"No, I'm keeping it," Lily said decisively. "Potter will just have to learn to deal with rejection."

Liz shook her head, then made her way to the boys' dorm. After knocking and receiving a reply, she opened the door to find Peter attacking James' hair with a wet comb.

"I- can't- make it- lie flat!" Peter cried in frustration. Sirius, his hair neatly combed so it fell in his eyes, was sitting on the end of his bed, watching with malicious interest. Liz rubbed her forehead, willing to bet Sirius was withholding his assistance just to spite James.

"Peter, you have to make it lie flat! Lily's going to be there!" James yelled as Peter gave a particularly hard tug, and with a snap, several teeth broke off the comb. "Okay, okay, stop!"

"I'm sorry!" Peter said.

"Just forget it," James muttered. "Hey, Ebony," he added when he saw Liz standing awkwardly in the doorway.

"Hi, James, Peter, Sirius," she said. "Hey, Moony."

"Mmm," Remus said from behind his book.

Liz frowned, but turned to the others. "We'd better go." Sighing, she and the boys left. Liz turned, hoping that Remus would comment on her hair, but he remained focused on his book, ignoring them.

"Bye, Remus," she said quietly as she shut the door behind her.

Once in the corridor, Peter headed one way to detention while the others made their way down to the dungeons. Sirius and James walked on either side of Liz, refusing to speak to one another. This was going to be a long night.

They were welcomed at Slughorn's office door by the professor himself. "Hello, hello, so glad you could make it," he said happily. "Come on in, we're just waiting for Miss Evans and Miss Clark."

Liz glanced around the room nervously. Slughorn must have expanded it temporarily for the night, because his office hadn't been as big as it was now when she'd served detention with him. There was a large table, set for fifteen people, and covered with an astonishing array of rich foods. Slughorn was aiming to impress, and so far, he was doing a good job. Several suspicious eyes followed the trio as they made their way to the seats indicated. Liz found herself sandwiched between James and sixth year Gwenog Jones, who was captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team. Her willingness to foul both on and off the field had earned her a scary reputation.

There were a few more faces that Liz recognized, mostly among her year, but the only one that she knew by name was the other Slytherin, the Prefect Lucius Malfoy that she and Remus had tailed at the beginning of first year.

"Ahh, there you are! Come in, come in!" Slughorn directed Lily and Sarah to their seats. James' head turned to follow Lily as she skirted around Ryan Bennett, her cheeks flushing. "So glad everyone could make it! Now then, I do believe introductions are in order!" Slughorn took his seat at the head of the table. He indicated the Ravenclaw boy nearest to him. "This is Damocles Belby, he's quite the potions whiz, aren't you, Mr. Belby?"

"I suppose so, Professor," Belby said in a deep bass voice.

"Don't be shy, of course you are!" Slughorn chortled. "He's planning on working in the Experimental Potions Department at the Ministy next year, already has a job offering and he's still in school!" Belby said nothing, though he did grin shyly.

Lucius Malfoy and Rabastan Lestrange- both from very influential families, isn't that right, boys? I assume you already know Mr. Sirius Black?"

Lestrange and Malfoy both looked at Sirius with identical expressions of disgust on their faces. "Yes," Lestrange said shortly.

Sirius leaned around James to whisper to Liz, "Lestrange's older brother is married to my cousin Bella, and I think Malfoy is courting Cissy at the moment."

"Something you wanted to share with us, Mr. Black?" Slughorn asked cheerfully. Sirius sat up straight, flushing slightly.

"No, sir."

"Then here's Amos Diggory, current Wizard Chess Club champion, and Mr. Frank Longbottom, the top of his class! I'm sure both of you will go far. Studying hard for your O.W.L.s, Frank?"

"Of course, Professor Slughorn," Frank said, pushing a solitary lima bean around on his plate. Amos Diggory, a fourth year Hufflepuff, shrugged, looking slightly disappointed that Slughorn had passed over him in favor of Frank.

"Miss Gwenog Jones here, she's already been scouted for the Holyhead Harpies, you know," Slughorn said proudly. Gwenog smirked, looking very smug.

Slughorn proceeded to introduce all the new second years, embarrassing most of them in the process. Ashley Nickels, who had a talent for Herbology, and Ryan Bennett, whose father was apparently the head of the Department of Mysteries, were both passed over in favor of Melissa Zambrose, whose step-father apparently sent Slughorn a hamper of Honeydukes sweets every year. Melissa had the grace to respond to Slughorn's inquiries without embarrassing herself, but Liz could see the poor girl becoming more and more flustered with each question.

After thoroughly annoying Sirius and Sarah, Slughorn then proceeded to praise Lily's potions and Charms skills to the point of Lily looking like she was re-thinking her decision to come. Liz forced herself to focus on her fork as Slughorn commended her on her Defensive spells, her face growing hotter and hotter as he carried on.

"And Mr. James Potter!" Slughorn beamed at the last person he had yet to embarrass. James froze with food in his mouth, giving the impression of a deer caught in a car's headlights. "Your father's been a great asset to the Ministry during these troublesome times, has he not?"

"Er, I suppose, sir," James said uncertainly.

"So modest!" Slughorn chuckled. "And are you still planning on trying out for the Quidditch team this year?"

_Uh-oh, _Liz thought, shooting a nervous glance at Sirius. He'd stiffened at the mention of Quidditch, his fists clenching and unclenching around his fork.

Sirius might have let it go if James hadn't swallowed and immediately started on an enthusiastic spiel about how his training was going, being careful to omit specifics since he didn't want Gwenog to steal any ideas from him. He was just talking Slughorn through his training schedule when Sirius finally had enough.

"Professor Slughorn, I have to go now," he said, standing up suddenly. His face, normally full of laughter, was hard and unreadable.

"Oh, but stay a while!" Slughorn protested, his smile melting off his face. "We haven't even gotten around to dessert!"

"I don't care," Sirius said flatly. "Thanks for the invite sir, but I can't say it was fun."

The table had gone silent; most of the students had food falling off of forks and spoons, their jaws hanging open as they watched the spectacle. Nobody had ever spoken to Slughorn like that before.

"But, Mr. Black-"

"Look, if I had to listen to on more word from that airbag sitting next to me, I think I might have grabbed his swollen head and slammed it into the table, which I doubt anyone would enjoy besides me."

James' mouth fell open. "Sirius-"

"Shut up. Just shut up!" Sirius snapped. He turned and stormed out, leaving a ringing silence in his wake.

James bit his lip. Liz knew he wasn't going to cry, since James never let anyone see that, but she could tell he was fighting back tears. She couldn't believe how insensitive Sirius was being. Pushing her chair away, she said, "Thanks for the dinner, Professor, but I'd better go after Sirius before he does something stupid."

Slughorn didn't bother to protest as Liz ran out, acutely aware of all the eyes that were trained on her. She caught sight of Sirius at the end of the corridor, and she sprinted after him. "Sirius!" she yelled. "Sirius!" He didn't look back, but his pace did slow a bit once he'd glanced over his shoulder to see who was chasing him.

Liz caught up with her friend in a side corridor that lead past the potions classroom. Sirius was sitting against the wall, tapping his foot impatiently. "What do you want?" he asked.

"Sirius, I know you're upset right now, but James is your friend!" Liz said, settling herself next to him. "Just because he goes off about how good he is at Quidditch doesn't mean you should insult him! Getting mad at James over his Quidditch talent is like getting mad at me because I'm good at combat, or me getting mad at you for your Transfiguration skills!"

"But isn't James the one who's generally regarded as the expert on that?" Sirius said bitterly.

"Yeah, but you're second best-"

"That's just it!" Sirius said. "That's all I am! Second-best, the sidekick, the helper! You and Remus correlate tactics to help us pull off pranks, but James just shoots my ideas down when I suggest anything! I hate it!"

* * *

Sirius had never been so angry in his life, not even when his mother had screamed at him for an hour straight when he'd first come home over the summer. He'd thought James was a great guy, but he was only just now realizing that the Potter boy was always treating him like an inferior, always pushing his accomplishments to the side so he could show off.

He appreciated that Liz cared enough to come after him, but at the moment, he wasn't in the mood to talk. After his outburst, he remained unwilling to speak, ignoring Liz's irritating pokes in the arm.

"Sirius, look, you'll feel much better if you go talk to James about what's bothering him-"

"Just shut up and go talk to Remus or something," he snapped. "I don't want you telling me what to do."

Liz blinked. "Fine. I will!" And with that, she stood up and marched away, her back ramrod straight.

Sirius buried his face in his knees. Right then, he hated all the Marauders. They never appreciated him, they always looked to James for guidance, and they never had any real problems to worry about.

Sirius might have wallowed in self-pity all night if it hadn't been for the clock tower tolling several hours later, alerting him to the curfew. Since he wasn't going back to the dinner party, he stood and slowly made his way back to the common room.

Peter was still in detention, but James, Liz and Remus were nowhere to be seen. Sirius frowned, a tinge of worry gnawing at him. Remus shouldn't have been able to get out of bed with his bad leg, so where was he? And where were James and Liz?

* * *

Remus refused to watch his friends get ready for the dinner party. He knew why he wasn't invited, but he tried to hide the hurt as best as he could. He'd heard Liz come in, and heard all four of them leave, then finally, he was alone. He knew he needed to catch up on his homework, but the only thing he had left to do was label a diagram of a Snargaluff pod for Herbology, which he could do in five minutes. Instead, Remus pulled out a piece of scrap parchment and scrawled a note saying he was going to the library. He didn't think he could stand being in the dorm for another second without going insane.

The worst part, however, was actually getting to the library. It took Remus five minutes alone to climb down the stairs, cross the common room, and fall out of the portrait hole. The Fat Lady clucked her tongue in disapproval, but Remus ignored her. Using a chink in the wall to haul himself upright, he slowly began limping toward the library.

He had to stop and rest several times along the way, about ready to give up and just go back to the dorm, but he just couldn't. Remus was getting to the library, broken ankle or no. Later, he would look back and say he was just being tupped, but at the moment, it was with a single-minded determination that he kept going.

Once he'd reached the library, Remus pulled a copy of _The Complete and Authoritative Guide to Recognizing Dark Creatures _off a shelf and settled himself at a table. Madam Pince gave him a suspicious glare, but Remus ignored her. She gave that look to everybody who dared touch one of her precious books.

Remus hadn't been in the library for more than half an hour before Liz came in, her eyes red. She looked around the room, spotted him, and came over, collapsing in the seat next to him.

"Liz?" Remus said, alarmed. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, unwilling to speak. After a moment, she took a deep breath. "Sirius is mad at James."

"Again?" Remus smacked a hand to his forehead. "What happened _this _time?"

"Quidditch. What else?" She sighed and let her head drop to the table. "So when I ran after Sirius, he angsted about how we never appreciate him, then snapped at me to go talk to you." She clenched her fists. "The bloody idiot."

Remus sighed. "Is James mad, too?"

"I have no idea. Probably." She lifted her head and brushed her hair out of her eyes, growling when her fingers knocked the barrette out of her hair. She stooped to retrieve it from under the table, then froze. "Remus?"

"What?"

"Your…foot…"

Remus ducked his head, trying to see his bad ankle. He groaned when he caught sight of it- it had swollen to twice its usual size, and when he held his hand over it, he could feel the heat coming off it. "Fantastic."

"I thought you promised to stay off it!" Liz scolded as she helped him up. "You need to go to the Hospital Wing, right now."

"You don't need to mother me," Remus said, but was forced to admit she was right when he tried to stand on it and collapsed.

"You idiot," she sighed.

"Guys?" Remus' head snapped up when he heard James' voice. "Moony? Ebony? Are you in here?"

"Shh!" Madam Pince snapped.

"We're in the back, James," Liz called.

"Shh!"

James came over to them, his face full of worry. "I didn't think you'd be able to make it to the library on that leg of yours," he said. Catching sight of said leg, he groaned. "Aw, hell, Moony, what were you thinking?"

"I don't know," Remus said sheepishly as James grabbed him from one side and Liz from the other.

"We need to get you to the Hospital Wing," James said as they helped Remus out of the library.

"Yeah, I think I was already told that," Remus sighed. He glanced at James' set face. "So, how was the dinner party?" he asked hesitantly. "Liz said something about Sirius..."

"He was just being a git," James said. "He'll come around." But he still looked troubled.

It took them nearly an hour to get Remus up to the Hospital Wing, where Madam Pomferey nearly had all their heads off for allowing Remus to be so reckless.

"I don't know _what _you were thinking, I _told _you to stay off that leg," she scolded, her face a conflicting mix of anger and concern. "You were _supposed_ to stay in bed, not running about in the castle or- or the forest like some _wild thing-_"

Remus felt a hard lump in his throat and swallowed hard. He wasn't a wild thing! Just because he was- just because he was a-

Remus couldn't help it when he felt a tear drip down his nose and land on Madam Pomferey's arm. She looked up, startled when she saw his face. She hugged him gently.

"I'm sorry, Remus, I didn't mean it like that," she said softly. Remus sighed, avoiding his friends' embarrassed looks. "I just want you to take better care of yourself, you're worth more than you think."

After she finished wrapping his ankle in bandages, she ordered James and Liz not to let him go anywhere on his own and sent them off just as the clock struck nine.

They got back in time to see Sirius climb into bed, where he ignored them, not even bothering to ask where they'd been. Remus sighed, but knew he shouldn't dwell on it. Things would be better once November came around and both Sirius and James were on the Quidditch team together...

* * *

**A/N: Please wait for the normally scheduled AN while Dndchk flies into a rage about how fanfics have Remus biting his foot or hand off and having it reattached with no ill side effects and working perfectly in a few hours...**

**...or being allergic to silver...or having yellow eyes 24/7...or being superhumanly strong, fast, agile, being able to smell like a bloodhound... **

**COME ON, PEOPLE! ISN'T HE ENOUGH OF A BAMF WITHOUT THAT? LET'S STICK TO REALITY, PEOPLE! AND WHILE WE'RE AT IT, LET'S ALSO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WHILE THEY WOULD MAKE A CUTE COUPLE IF THEY WERE GAY, SIRIUS AND REMUS REALLY WEREN'T IN CANON AND YOU SHOULDN'T DELUDE YOURSELF OTHERWISE!**

**AND WTF WERE THE SCRIPTWRITERS THINKING WHEN THEY DID THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN MOVIE, ANYWAY?**

**Sorry, I just had to let that all out. I'm in a RAGE! *trollface***

**Sigh.**

***throws a whisky bottle at TV***

**Hope this chapter made up for the wait! In response to my earlier question... I meant the Whomping Willow incident. I'm actually kind of thinking making it happen right after the OWLS incident, but I still want to hear your opinions, and I'm sorry for all the confusion... oops. XD**

**Not sure when the next chapter will be up, this one was a bit of a b*tch to write and I've been procrastinating pretty badly. Grr. I have an essay to write, but I can get it done in, like, ten minutes, so I've been putting it off. You're welcome.**

**Oh, yeah, I found a story that's almost as bad, if not- dare I say it? WORSE than My Immortal. I'm not kidding. Anyway, I was flaming the crap out of _MadisonDecemberSayer_'s story and (she raged at me in one of her ANs- I feel accomplished!) she went and flamed every one of my stories. I was cracking up! Quote:**

I DINT EVEN READ 2 NO ITZ VRY DUM

**...Yeah, that's the kind of sh*t this chick writes. Major LOLz there. Do the world a favor and go flame her, Fred, and Jorge. I wish I was making this up. *shakes head***

**You guys must love me a lot to put up with this.**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**

* * *

**JoeSax**: I'm Baaack! Ummm I always thought it was 5th year, before the exams but that's just a hunch.

By the way, on a scale of 1-10 how cheesy/cliched do you want the song. I have done 2 versions of the chorus and verse notation in the last 2 days. It'll probably done in a week

**Wow, you really went through and wrote a song? I'm... I'm touched. You're awesome, dude. Write it however feels natural- I'm sure it'll be great no matter what you do! Will you post it on YouTube or something?**

* * *

**daisy allie: **incident happened right after the OWLs, i think... :) enjoyed this chapter much! hehe, elvendork... prequel is awesome :) SO EXCITED FOR AVPSY! bye bye now! can't wait for the next chapter!

**Thanks for trying to help... my bad :P I know the prequel is awesome! I want CANON Marauders! :) And AVPSY!**


	10. Star Kid Potter

**A/N: Hey, guys, I'm soooo sorry about the long wait, but I got sick, then grounded. Yeah…. long story. Anyways, I won't be able to reply to any reviews for a while, not until mom and dad relent and let me have internet access on my phone again, dangit. I won't be able to read any fanfics, or even see my reviews, but please keep them coming! They'll be there when I get ungrounded! I will still be able to post, but other than that, I'm pretty much internet-free. Yippee.**

**To millie-mae: I'm sorry I won't be able to beta your story for now, (or theblonde2243's…) but as for the Marauder's Companion, I'm fine. Mibamonster enjoyed the story, it was the characters who didn't. It's cool, and thanks for worrying :)**

**Allrighty, for the rest of you, here's the long-awaited chapter! I apologize for the shortness :(**

**Disclaimer: If I was in Harry Potter, I'd be catching up on my Transfiguration homework right now instead of my Algebra…Other than that, I don't own it. Shoot.**

Quidditch tryouts.

James had never been more excited for anything in his whole life, not even when he'd been eleven years old and was boarding the Hogwarts Express for the first time. He woke up just as the sun was beginning to peek over the mountains in the distance, and, too excited to go back to sleep, he decided to pass the time reading the Animagus book.

A few minutes before Liz was due to come in, Sirius stirred. "'Mornin," he yawned.

"'Mornin," James said, eyeing him. Sirius had been in a foul mood over the past week, avoiding the rest of the Marauders like the plague. It bothered all of them, but mostly James, since Sirius' anger seemed to be directed primarily at him, and he had no idea why. He would have been able to deal with it if Remus' ankle would heal faster, but without Sirius' help, James was having a hard time supporting Remus. Liz and Peter helped as much as they could, but they simply didn't have the muscle mass needed for the job.

Sirius propped himself up on his elbow. "James, can we talk?"

"Uh, sure, I guess," James said. "What's up? You've been-"

"A right bloody prat," Sirius interrupted. He looked down and picked at a stray thread on his sheets.

James shrugged. "I was going to say 'acting oddly', but I guess 'prat' works, too."

"Yeah, about that…" Sirius trailed off, like he was trying to find the right words. "Look, Liz said something to me last week, and I've been thinking it over. I-" he bit his lip, then plowed on. "I'm sorry, James. I was just mad at you because you kept bragging about how good you are at Quidditch, and you'd always leave to practice without me."

James grimaced. "Did I really? Merlin, Sirius, I had no idea. I'm sorry- I guess I was the one acting like a prat."

"Well, I',m not going to say anything either way," Sirius said, allowing a small grin to cross his features, "But I wanted to ask you something before tryouts today."

"What?"

"Just… If one of us makes it on the team and the other doesn't, we won't let it come between us?" Sirius fiddled with his sheets, and James realized that Sirius was actually worried that he might not make the team. No wonder he was so jealous of James- with his natural talent on the field, he was certain to be picked, after all.

James nodded. "of course not, Sirius. I don't see why we should worry, though- of course we'll both make the team!"

Sirius grinned at him. "You're sure?"

"'Course I am! I've seen you fly, you're brilliant!"

"Thanks. I'd say the same, but your ego doesn't need to get any bigger than it is already."

James stared at Sirius for a moment, then burst out laughing. It was the best feeling in the world when Sirius joined in. They were friends again, and to James, that was always going to be better than Quidditch.

"Would you _please_ be quiet?" Remus' muted voice came floating to them through his covers.

"Sure, sure," Sirius said. He lowered his voice. "We'll be sure to do our laughing as _quietly_ as possible." He winked at James, then took a deep breath. "AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Gah!" Remus sat up and yanked his hangings open. I didn't mean wake up half the tower- wait, what?" His mouth fell open as he looked from James to Sirius, who were both howling with laughter. "Did I miss something?"

"Only everything," James said. "Wake up Peter, will you?" he added in a sudden flash of inspiration, "We're going to scare Liz when she comes in!"

Remus rolled his eyes, but grinned as he stood and limped over to Peter's bed. He was walking more easily now, but it still pained him to move. James felt slightly guilty for making Remus strain himself so early in the morning, but was quickly distracted by Liz knocking on the door.

He and Sirius sprinted for Peter's bed and grabbed Remus, throwing him on top of Peter as they dove in after him. James clapped a hand over Peter's mouth to keep him from yelling at the sudden invasion of his bed. Waking up to find yourself buried under your roommates couldn't have been a pleasant experience, but James wasn't about to let Peter ruin their surprise. Remus, thankfully, had enough sense to remain silent.

They lay on the bed with bated breath as they heard Liz push the door open. "HEY, BOYS!" she yelled. "IT'S TIME TO WAKE- hey!" they heard her footsteps run over to james' bed, then Sirius' and Remus'. James began giggling silently as he imagined her coming over, ripping open the hangings and-

"BOO!" Sirius yelled, leaping off the bed. Liz screamed and fell over as he and James lunged at her.

"That was not funny!" she yelled as James and Sirius erupted into laughter. "Wait a second-" she frowned in confusion. "Are you two friends again?"

"Yep!" Sirius said. She shook her head slowly.

"I'll never understand you boys," she muttered.

"Peter rolled off his bed, groaning. "Moony, your knee was in my stomach,' he moaned.

"Sorry, but James practically _threw_ me on top of you." Remus sighed and went over to his trunk. "Liz, do you mind leaving so we can get dressed?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going, don't nag."

"So when did you two make up?" Remus asked once Liz had shut the door.

"About five minutes ago," Sirius said. "So now we're ready for Quidditch tryouts!" He settled his broom on his shoulder impatiently.

Remus and Peter looked at one another. "I'll never understand them," Peter said.

"Amen to that."

Once they'd gone down to breakfast, Sirius discovered he didn't have much of an appetite- in fact, he was feeling rather queasy. He loaded his plate up with his favorite foods, but just sat there, picking at it.

"Sirius, you have to eat if you want enough energy for tryouts," James said, shoving a forkful of eggs into his mouth.

"I know," Sirius said, grimacing, "I'm…I'm not very hungry, though."

"Just have some toast or bacon, anything," Remus said. "Look, they even have your favorite strawberry perserves!"

"I'm not hungry."

"What's this? Sirius Black, not hungry?" a voice sneered from behind them.

"What do you want, Snivellus?" Sirius demanded, looking over his shoulder at the greasy Slytherin.

"Wait, don't tell me-" he smirked, ignoring Sirius, "You're _nervous_."

"Am not," Sirius snapped. "You're just jealous you don't have the skills to try out for Quidditch yourself!"

"Why would I waste my time with something as trivial as a sport?"

Liz rolled her eyes. "More importantly, why are you wasting our time and breathing our clean air? Shove off, Snivelly."

"Auberey, why?" Lily demanded, coming over. Apparantly, she'd sensed a confrontation, because she was now standing protectively next to Snape. "You're so rude, Sev wasn't doing anything!"

Sirius snorted, drawing Lily's attention to him. "Something you wanted to say, Black?"

"No, I just jinx your naivete to be very amusing," Sirius said cooly.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Lily demanded.

"Oh, nothing. Now please leave."

"With pleasure!" Lily took Snape's arm and led him away, casting a scornful look over her shoulder as they left the Great Hall.

James glanced at Sirius. "You're _not_ nervous, are you?"

"Of course not," Sirius lied.

"Good," James said. "Because tryouts start in…" He checked his watch. "Twenty minutes, and I think the Beaters go first!"

James gave Sirius several minutes to finish eating, but Sirius' appetite was well and truly gone now. After he finally accepted he wasn't going to eat anything, the Marauders headed down to the Quidditch pitch. The sun was barely visible behind a thick layer of grey clouds, and a cool breeze ruffles the grass as they crossed the grounds. There couldn't have been better Quidditch conditions.

Liz, Remus, and Peter split off as they reached the entrance, wanting to get good seats in the stands. Sirius' mouth went dry as they walked onto the pitch, where several hopefuls had already gathered. David Wood, the new captain, was checking the equipment. Since he already filled one Beater's spot, the competition to get in would be even more fierce than Sirius had anticipated.

James wished him luck as he went to join the Chasers, but Sirius hardly noticed. He felt like his stomach was about to jump out of his mouth. The Beaters nodded curtly at him when he went to join their ranks. It didn't escape his notice that there wasn't one under the age of fourteen.

"Good luck, Sirius," a girl called from the stands. Sirius whipped around, but it wasn't Liz- it was one of Lily's friends, the dark-haired one, Victoria. She waved to him; Lily, who was sitting next to her and looking very unhappy, grabbed her arm and made her put it down. After a moment of uncertainty, Sirius waved back.

"All right, you lot!" David yelled, drawing their attention to him. "We'll be doing tryouts for one Beater, two Chasers, and the Keeper, in that order. Now, the first thing I want you Beaters to do is get those bats-" he pointed to the stand next to him- "and show me how hard it is for you to hit those Bludgers. The rest of you can wait in the stands until I call you up."

Sirius and the other Beaters, eager to impress, hurried to the stands to select their bats. They weren't as good as the bats they'd use in the actual Quidditch matches, but they'd get the job done.

Once he was in the air, Sirius felt his nervousness drop away, faster than the ground he was quickly leaving behind. He raced one of the others around the pitch as they waited for David to release the Bludgers.

"Black and Boot! You're up!" David yelled as the two black balls erupted broom the crate. Sirius and a fifth year, Michael Boot, swung around to meet them. Sirius was a scarlet streak as he flew toward the nearest Bludger, but Michael got there first. He brought his bat around, and, with a resounding _crack_, sent the ball flying to the far end of the field.

Cursing, Sirius headed for the other Bludger, his bat out and ready. "Take that," he grunted as he swung with all his might, sending the Bludger flying after its twin.

"Four more times!" David called from below. Sirius and Michael flattened themselves to their broom handles as they raced to get to the Bludgers first. It was bad luck that just as Sirius' bat was about to connect, the Bludger he was aiming for suddenly reversed direction and boomeranged off to the left. It wasn't Sirius' fault, but it looked like it had been.

"Crap," he muttered as he flew after it.

"That's one bad one for you, Black,' David called as Sirius sent the offending Bluger in the right direction.

The next two were met with success, and Sirius was feeling very pleased-almost cocky- as he aimed for his final try. Swinging as hard as he could, he brought the bat around to hit-

Nothing.

"No!" Sirius yelled as the bat whistled through empty air.

"That's five! Black, Boot, get back here,' David yelled. "You two!" he pointed at the waiting hopefuls. "Your turn!"

Sirius landed a little too hard, fuming. He was better than that, and he knew it! Unfortunately, though, Michael Boot had managed to hit five out of five Bludgers successfully, meaning that the others would be hard-pressed to claim the coveted spot. It didn't matter, though- Sirius was out of the running, and he knew it.

"You were really good, Sirius," Remus said when Sirius joined them in the stands. Sirius ignored him, opting to bury his face in his hands instead.

"Hey, there's always next year," Peter said. Sirius grunted. He wasn't angry, he wasn't upset- in fact, he didn't feel much of anything, right then. All he wanted was for tryouts to be over so he could go back to the dorms.

Finally, it was the Chasers' turn. Liz and Peter cheered as James flew through the air, scoring once- twice- three times-as he hurled the Quaffle effortlessly through the middle hoop for the fifth time, David called the Chasers down to earth.

"Good job, everyone," he said approvingly. "I've made my decisions- Michael Boot is our new Beater, Warren Warner is Keeper, and Cory Spinnet and James Potter are our new Chasers."

James pumped his fist in the air, his triumph solid. Sirius stood and left, the cheers of his housemates fading behind him as he made his way back to the castle.

"Guys!" James yelled as he jumped over seats, tripping in his haste to get to his friends. "I made the team! I made the team!"

"We know- that's brilliant, James," Remus said, but he looked distracted. James' grin faded when he guessed why.

"Where's Sirius?" he asked, looking around. He could have sworn he'd seen the tall boy sitting with the rest of the Marauders.

"He left," Liz said. James turned toward the exit, but she grabbed his arm. "I think he just wants to be alone for now, okay? You can talk to him later."

:Alright," James said reluctantly. He wanted to talk to Sirius, to explain that he wasn't going to let his new position as Chaser go to his head.

"Don't worry," Liz said. "He'll talk to you when he's ready."

"Yeah." James scuffed the floor, unsure of what to say next. "Maybe I can ask him if he wants to help me train? That way, he'll be ready for next year!"

Remus nodded approvingly. "That's great, James. I think he'll appreciate that."'Peter perked up. "Hey, can we go to the kitchens to celebrate?" he asked eagerly.

"Why not?" James decided. "I think there's a treacle tart down there that has my name on it!"

"Not if I get to it first!" Liz yelled, jumping up. She and James ran for the castle, Remus and Peter taking their time. The two in the lead sat on the steps to wait for the others.

"So, Ebony," James said, stretching his legs out in front of him, "Are you going to try out for Keeper next year?"

Liz snorted. "Please. Like I'm that good?" She was silent for a moment, then she said, "Maybe not next year, but fourth year, I guess? The tryouts looked doable, as long as I practice."

"Cool, you can practice by helping me practice!" James said.

"Don't forget Sirius, though," she reminded him. James nodded grimly.

"Yeah…I hope he doesn't get too upset…"

"Just keep a lid on your bragging and he'll be fine," Liz said.

"I don't brag!" James protested. "Since when do I brag?" Liz just looked at him. "Okay, maybe a little…" Look. "Okay, some- but not all the time!"

"Whatever you say," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Man, you guys take forever,' james said as Remus and Peter approached.

"Some of us realize that running everywhere only results in getting fatigued more quickly." Remus shook his head in exasperation.

"Fatigued?" James asked as they entered the castle.

"It means tired," Remus sighed.

"Well, why didn't you say so in the first place?" James asked.

"Not all of us have the vocabulary of a six year old."

"Oh! Moony burn!" Peter said.

"Shut up," James and Remus said.

Down in the kitchens, the foursome celebrated james' spot on the Quidditch team with an overflowing platter of treacle tarts. James thought there couldn't have been a better lunch.

Except maybe his mum's lasagna.

After they finished eating, they bade the house-elves good-bye and headed up to the Gryffindor common room. After climbing through the portrait hole, Liz, Remus, and Peter stopped. Sirius was waiting for them in the middle of the common room, his foot tapping impatiently.

"Hey, Sirius," Remus said in an overly bright voice. "We were just going to the- uh- library- so, yeah, we'll leave you two to talk." And with that, he grabbed Liz and Peter by the arms and dragged them away backwards.

"Wait, why are we going to the library?" Peter asked as he was hauled away. "I don't have any homework!"

James and Sirius stood there uncomfortably, unsure of where to begin.

"So," Sirius said finally, forcing a smile onto his face, "You made Chaser. Congratulations."

"Thanks," James said. He cleared his throat. "Look, Sirius, I'm sorry you didn't get on the team…"

"S'not your fault," Sirius said.

"Well…no, but I thought that's the response etiquette calls for?" James grinned sheepishly. "But I was wondering if you wanted to help me train? I thought it'd be a good way for you to get better, so next year, you can kick Boot's arse."

Sirius' mouth fell open slightly. "You're- you're not bragging?" he asked, dumbfounded?"

"Liz told me I had to knock myself down a few rungs,' James said, shrugging. "And Remus scolded me, so nothing's new there."

"Good for them," Sirius said. "Because you were starting to get mighty conceited, mate."

James winced. "I'm sorry about that." He hesitated, then said, "So, are we still friends?"

Sirius grinned, a genuine smile this time. "Yeah. Friends."

**A/N: I'm still allowed to get online every now and then to post, so don't worry- I'm already started on chapter twelve, and hopefully, it'll be up by this Saturday, but… no guarantees.**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	11. A Not so Happy Birthday

**A/N: Sorry for the wait- I have no excuses except that I was being lazy. Yeah…. Anyways, I had a huge boatload of homework to make up from when I was sick and all that good stuff, but since I finished it a while ago, I can't use it as an excuse. :/**

**So, a friend and I got a D&D club started at school, and I somehow got stuck as Head DM, which basically means I have to teach the game to the other DMs. *facedesks* But I'm having fun, so I don't really mind.**

**My boyfriend and I will be celebrating our one-year anniversary on the 28th! One year! Wow! :)**

**All right, enough of my rambling. On with the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to come up with a clever way to say I don't own Harry Potter.**

* * *

"Hey, James, I just thought of something."

"First time for everything," James said.

"Shut it, you," Sirius said good-naturedly. "I just realized we need to start planning our Halloween prank!"

"I actually had an idea for that," Liz said, sitting up from her usual spot on the hearth rug. It was her favorite part of Gryffindor Tower; she liked to stretch, catlike, on the rug to enjoy the fire's warmth.

"What!" Sirius sat bolt upright, sending the chessboard flying.

"Hey!" Remus yelled.

"I didn't do it!" Peter screamed from the sofa, jolting awake.

Liz sighed and rubbed her temples as Sirius continued to berate her. "You had an idea for a halloween prank, and you didn't tell us?" he demanded. "What's wrong with you, you false Marauder? For withholding valuable information, you must be punished!"

"Sirius, I-"

"For failing to share prank ideas, you must sing the Siberian National Anthem in Ancient Norwegian, while waving a giant banner that says 'I Love Snivellus' in capital letters, and-"

"Sirius, shut up for a minute, will you?" Liz yelled. "It just slipped my mind!"

"Oh." Sirius paused for a moment. "And you must wear a sparkly fairy princess outfit while you're at it!"

The Marauders eyed him warily. "What if one of us boys does that?" Remus asked after a long pause.

Sirius shrugged. "Your costume would have a tutu and tiara as a bonus."

"Nice," Peter snickered. "Very classy."

"Nobody asked you, Pete," Sirius said. He shook his head, frowning at Liz. "So, at risk of having to do all of what I just decreed, tell us what you know!"

"Sir, yes sir!" Liz rolled her eyes. "I just thought we could make another laxative liquid and spike the pumpkin juice at the feast."

Sirius considered it. "Well, your idea certainly has merit, but there'd be no guarantees everyone'd drink the pumpkin juice."

"Oh." Liz's shoulders slumped. "Alright."

"No, it's still a good idea," Sirius said hastily. "But I'm sure there are ways we can improve on it."

"The bats!" James cried.

"Excuse me?" Remus said. "I thought I just heard you say-"

"Bats!" James repeated. "We could feed those conjured bats of Flitwick's the poop potion! It'd be perfect!"

"Bat guano everywhere!" Peter roared with laughter. "That's awesome!"

"What are you guys laughing about?" Lily demanded as she, Sarah and Victoria climbed through the portrait hole.

"We were just discussing how Liz had to sing the Siberian National Anthem in Ancient Norwegian while wearing a fairy princess outfit," James said.

"A what?"

"Yeah, what are you talking about, James?" Remus asked, a sly grin on his face. "It's a _sparkly_ fairy princess outfit."

The girls stared as the marauders exploded with laughter. "I'm confused," Lily said, shaking her head. "Is that what you were laughing about?"

"Yeah, sure," Sirius chortled. Lily's eyes narrowed.

"If I find out that you've been planning another prank or- or something- Merlin help me, I will go straight to McGonagall and report you!"

"Lily, I'm sure they were doing nothing," Sarah said.

"Sarah, these are the Marauders we're talking about," Lily said. "They're always up to _something_."

"Like, right now, we're plotting to take over the world with an army of Flobberworms," James declared.

"Shut it, Potter," Lily snapped.

"Go out with me?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No!"

"Pretty please with sprinkles on top?"

"No way, Potter. Shut up."

"You said it wrong," Liz said. "It's _sugar _on top, not _sprinkles_."

"Oh." James seemed to consider this for a moment, then turned back to Lily. "Pretty please with sugar _and _sprinkles on top?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "Come on," she said to her friends.

"Hi, Sirius," Victoria said as they passed. Liz could have sworn she saw the boy sit up straighter.

"Hey," he said, running a hand over his head. As soon as the girls had disappeared up the staircase, James started laughing.

"Sirius and Vicky, sitting in a tree-"

"K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Peter took up the chant.

"First comes loooove-"

"Then comes-"

"Alright, shut up, both of you," Sirius snapped, balling up a piece of parchment and chucking it at James' head. James caught it easily, lobbing it back. It bounced off the side of Sirius' head and rolled into the fire.

"No!" Remus screamed, lunging for it. He snatched the parchment away before the flames started to catch. "That was my potions essay!" He stared in dismay at the charred item in his hands.

"Oh, relax, Moony," Sirius said. He pulled out his wand, and with a lazy "_Reparo_," the paper mended itself. "Good as new."

"You're lucky it didn't get completely burned!" Remus snapped.

"That time of the month already?" James asked.

"No! And don't say that, it makes me sound like a girl!"

"You _are_ a girl, Moony."

"Sod off," Remus growled. He smoothed his essay, then placed it carefully in his bag. "I'm off to bed."

"Sleep well, fairy princess," Sirius called. Remus ignored him.

"So," James said, turning back to Sirius. "Bat poop?"

* * *

The library was a vile place, in Sirius' opinion, but sometimes, one had to make sacrifices if one was to obtain great hilarity from one's fellow students. Of course, it wasn't that they needed a potions book- the curriculum had kindly taught them that _particular _potion- but they needed a book on the Patronus Charm, or else they were screwed. Even after James' success in the Quidditch match, the most any of them (as in, James and himself) had been able to produce was vapor.

"For the love of Merlin's pink boxers, I _hate_ the library," Sirius moaned to himself.

"I know it's evil, but it's the only way we'll be able to help Remus," James whispered. They were prowling the C section, looking for Charms books.

"James, your breath stinks."

"It's not my fault you wanted to come with me!"

"You were sneaking out of the dorm in the middle of the night with the invisibility cloak! I thought you were going for food!"

"Shh!" James hissed. "Do you _want _Filch to find us?"

"Good point." They lapsed into silence, scanning the shelves anxiously. A title caught Sirius' eye and he stuck a hand out from under the cloak to grab it.

"You found it?" James asked eagerly.

"No- something better!" Sirius held the book out so James could read the title: _Cartography for the Modern Wizard_.

"What's that for?" James asked, wrinkling his nose.

Sirius smacked him. "Remember what Peter suggested- how we make a map?"

James' eyes widened with realization. "We can use this!"

Sirius smacked him again. "That's what I've been saying!" He took the book back and began flipping through it, bringing his lit wand closer to the pages so he could see. "They've got all kinds of stuff in here!" he said excitedly. "Measuring spells, spells to accurately scale stuff- we're taking this!"

"Fine, but you're carrying it."

"With pleasure. So, what are we looking for again?"

James sighed and pushed his glasses further up his nose. "Patronus Charm?"

"Oh, yeah, right."

They stayed in the library for the better part of an hour, combing the shelves meticulously until James managed to find a copy of _Advanced Charms_ that had been shoved behind _Charm Your Own Cheese_.

"Can we take that one, too?" Sirius asked, but James grabbed him by the arm and dragged him out. They had barely passed through the doors before an earsplitting wail rent the silence. Apparently, the books were enchanted to alert Madam Pince if somebody took one without permission.

"Run for it!" James yelled, grabbing his book tighter and sprinting away. Sirius, momentarily stunned, felt the cloak slip off him. He raced after James.

"Wait!" he called. "I'm not under the cloak!" A hand appeared in the middle of the hallway and Sirius grabbed it. James yanked him under the cloak and they pressed themselves agains the wall as Filch came hobbling down the corridor, Mrs. NorrisII at his heels.

James made to continue on their way, but Sirius dragged him in the opposite direction. He could have sworn he'd seen Filch appear from behind the statue of Gregory the Smarmy…

"What?" James hissed as Sirius approached the statue.

"I saw Filch come out from behind this thing," he said, running a hand over the statue's head. Finding an indent behind its left ear, he stuck a finger in and pushed. There was a small _click_, and the statue sank through the floor as the wall behind it split, revealing a dark passage behind it. The boys exchanged excited looks as they stepped through. They pulled the cloak off, lit their wands, and set off down the corridor.

"Where do you think this one goes?" Sirius asked.

James thought about it. "No idea, but I'm guessing it's not Hogsmeade. Filch must've been in or around the castle when the alarm went off, or in the passage, so it probably leads to some other part of Hogwarts."

"Makes sense," Sirius agreed.

The only sound they heard for a long time was their feet slapping softly against the stone floor. Finally, they came to a blank wall.

"Maybe we push on it?" James suggested.

Sirius shrugged and gave the wall an experimental shove. Meeting no resistance, he stumbled forward, landing with a yelp on the grass outside. Brushing himself off, he realized they were right around the corner from the front doors.

"This is brilliant!" James said excitedly, jumping through the wall. "Now we can sneak out of the castle whenever we want!"

"But Filch knows about this passage," Sirius pointed out.

"Once we have the map finished, that won't be a problem."

"True."

"So…" James craned his neck, looking up at Gryffindor Tower. "How are we getting back inside?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Through the wall, duh."

"Um, no," James said. "The wall's solid again." He slapped the stone behind him for emphasis.

"There must be a latch somewhere, like that statue," Sirius said, poking a brick. James joined him in his search, tapping and prodding bricks and chinks in the wall.

"I think I found something," James said after a few minutes. He stuck his fingers in a round hole near the base of the wall. There was another _click_, but the wall didn't open. Hesitantly, Sirius stuck his hand through the wall- an illusion, for now.

"Way too cool," he said, his face shining with excitement. "Let's go before it closes up."

Back in the passage, Sirius spent several minuted putting his hand through the wall and pulling it back, his eyes narrowed.

"I wish we could figure out how this thing works," James said wistfully.

"Well, we'll just have to wait until later for that," Sirius said as they made their way back into the castle.

When they reached the end of the tunnel, James and Sirius wasted time trying to find the button that would let them out. Finally, James gave a hiss of triumph as he pressed a vaguely triangular stone. There was the expected click, and the wall split to reveal the statue of Gregory the Smarmy sinking through the floor.

"Let's get out of here before Filch comes along," James whispered, drawing the cloak over himself and Sirius.

Yawning and stumbling, worn out from the adrenaline rush of finding a new secret passage, the two boys made their way up to Gryffindor Tower.

"Ursa Major," James yawned as they reached the Fat Lady.

"And where have you two been?" she demanded as she swung open.

"None of your business," Sirius said shortly, shutting the portrait behind them with a little more force than absolutely necessary.

"By the way, Sirius," James said tiredly as they pushed open the door to the second-year boys' dorm, "Happy Birthday."

Sirius stopped mid-yawn. "What?"

"October sixteenth. It's one in the morning, so today's you'r birthday, right?" James said.

"Oh, yeah," Sirius said as realization dawned on him. "Yeah, I guess it is!"

"Tomorrow, we're throwing you in the lake," James warned, pulling his shoes off and climbing into bed.

"That's fine,' Sirius said. He grinned. he couldn't believe he'd forgotten his birthday!

After setting his 'borrowed' book on the nightstand, Sirius kicked off his own shoes and lay down. He must have fallen asleep quickly, because the next thing he knew, Liz was standing over him, screaming, "Happy Birthday!"

"Wa-?" Sirius began as a lumpy parcel hit him in the chest. "What's this?"

"Your present," Liz said, going over to James' bed and prodding him. When he didn't move, she said, "David said that if you're not up in five minutes, he's giving your position to someone else."

"I'm up!" James yelled, leaping out of bed. When he saw Liz, however, he scowled. "Not funny."

"No, but it was effective," she replied, turning to wake the other two.

Sirius, meanwhile, was busy opening his presents. His friends were great- he got new Beater's armor from James, a Gryffindor scarf from Liz, and a combined present from Remus and Peter of the latest issues of _The Adventures of Martin Miggs, the Mad Muggle_.

"Thanks, guys," Sirius said, looking up from the wrappings, "This is brilliant!"

"Don't mention it," Peter said, though he sounded pleased.

"Come on, let's go down to breakfast," James said, jumping up. Liz left so the boys could get dressed. After waiting impatiently for Peter to finish putting his bag in order, Sirius bounded over to the door and yanked it open, the Marauders in tow. Liz joined them in the common room and the five of them raced down to breakfast together.

They were just loading their plates with food when the post came, hundreds of owls swooping and diving overhead, dropping packages into their owners' laps. The Marauders ducked when a handsome tawny owl dropped a copy of _The Daily Prophet _into James' cereal, splattering milk everywhere.

"Gross," James complained, pulling the sodden newspaper out of his food. He froze when he saw the headline.

"What is it?" Sirius asked, noticing his friend's stillness.

Wordlessly, James turned the newspaper around so Sirius, Remus and Liz could see it: **DEATH EATER ATTACKS ON THE RISE: THREE FOUND DEAD IN HOME**.

"What?" Sirius demanded, grabbing the paper. He began reading, a lump forming in his throat as he spoke. "_Last night, the Dark Mark was spotted above the Oxfordshire home of Teri and Brandon Duke, ages 38 and 41. They and their ten-year old daughter, Amanda, were found dead inside when Aurors were called in to investigate._"

"Wait- Duke?" Remus said, starting slightly at the name. "Isn't that the twins' surname?" The twins to whom he was referring were Abigail and Anthony, fourth year Ravenclaw Chasers. Although they were brother and sister, it was difficult to tell them apart. Sirius glanced over at them now. Abigail (he could tell it was her because he could see her earrings) was staring blankly at her food, oblivious to the world. Anthony had tears dripping down his cheeks, though he made no move to wipe them away. Their Housemates were talking quietly to them, but it was obvious from their expressions that the condolences weren't helping. As he watched, Abigail dropped her head onto the table.

Sirius felt his gut twist into a knot. Although he couldn't care less if his parents dropped dead, he knew that most people loved their families, and to have them killed like that… he couldn't imagine what it felt like. The thought made him physically ill, and he felt bile rising in his throat as he watched Professor Flitwick make his way to the twins. After speaking quietly to the pair, he led them out of the Great Hall.

"Poor blokes," James said softly. "What do you think will happen to them?"

"They'll probably go to stay with a relative," Liz guessed. "I don't know if they'll come back to Hogwarts, though."

Peter bit his lip. "Why them, though?" he asked. "Why would Death Eaters choose them?"

James shrugged as Sirius continued scanning the article. He swallowed as he read the closing lines. "_The Ministry believes this may be the latest in a seemingly-connected series of cases relating to Muggleborn murders. Wether the murder victims are by accident of chance, one thing is certain: Lord Voldemort, or You-Know-Who, as some are beginning to call him, is not a wizard to be taken lightly._"

He sat back and the Marauders looked at one another. The temperature in the Great Hall seemed to drop twenty degrees. Sirius shivered. Voldemort (he refused to think You-Know-Who, it sounded ridiculous to him) was gaining power. He hadn't thought too much of him over the summer- after all, Muggleborn killings weren't completely unheard of- but as the deaths continued to increase, he wasn't so certain that Voldemort wasn't a threat. What kind of sicko would kill a child? A shiver ran up his spine when he recalled the day Liz had seen a man in the woods. The family in the newspapers could have been him and his friends.

Sirius sighed unhappily, thinking how Amanda was only a year away from starting Hogwarts. What would her life have been like, had she been allowed to live? It just wasn't fair that she'd never live to see eleven, whereas he was turning a year older not much longer after she'd been killed.

Finally, James broke the silence. "Look, I don't want to sound callous, but there's nothing we can do. It's horrible, yes, but we can't change what happened. So, let's forget about it for now and just try to enjoy Sirius' birthday."

The Marauders nodded agreement. They finished breakfast in silence, then headed down to the lake to throw Sirius in, but their hearts just weren't in it. Their excitement from the morning's prospects of a cheerful day had fled when the newspaper arrived with its gruesome tale. Even Sirius and James showing off their newly acquired books didn't lift their spirits much.

"Well," Remus said gloomily in the dormitory that night, "You can't say it wasn't an eventful day."

"It sucked royal hippogriff," Sirius agreed. He sighed and flopped face-first onto his bed.

"Well, look at the bright side," James said with an air of grasping at straws, "We can brew the laxative liquid tomorrow."

"Call that a bright side?" Peter muttered, pulling his robes over his head. James shrugged.

"I just want this day to be over," Sirius mumbled into his pillow. The other three Marauders sighed heavily in agreement.

They finished getting ready in silence. As Sirius climbed under the covers, he reflected that it probably wouldn't be long before more deaths would be announced in the _Prophet_'s headlines.

It was a depressing thought.

* * *

**A/N: The Siberian Anthem in Ancient Norwegian idea goes to Mibabmonster. Go read their collection called The Marauder's Companion- It's absolutely hysterical.**

**Anyway, I can't promise when the next update will be- I'm kind of bad like that- but I have no intention of quitting when I'm this far ahead. Kayz?**

**Sorry that I can't reply to reviews, but I did get to read them, and you guys made my day! Thank you! :D**

**Also, to Hearts in Strangeness, you might not enjoy a few chapters I have planned, because Quidditch factors pretty heavily in Part Two. Just so you know.**

**Not sure when I'll be ungrounded, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be getting internet access on my phone soon!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndch**


	12. Oh, Poop

**A/N: Okay, guys… *cracks knuckles* So, as you may or may not have seen on 'my' update on part one, I've been grounded for a REALLY long time. Mom finally allowed me back on the computer, so I updated after I'd gotten my Minecraft withdrawal satisfied. *ducks flying tomatoes* Some of you asked why I posted the notice on part one- My friend actually posted for me, and I guess she didn't realize I wanted it on part two instead. :P So, yeah. I've had thirteen completed for over 3 months now… _ but then I was lazy and barely started fourteen, so I have no idea when that will be up. Of course, since I'm allowed to post again, I don't think it should be too long. *knocks on wood***

**Not that anyone cares, but my boyfriend and I did reach the one-year mark back in November. We recently found out that our families have the exact same 'good' china plates and the same Lennox collection Nativity set. Creepy. (Personally, I think it's karma, but who knows?) He got me an authentic replica of Lupin's wand for Christmas. I was practically over the moon! I love it so much and it looks freaking AMAZING. And we went and saw the Hobbit together. It. Was. AWESOME. There were a few scenes that either got messed up or were added completely, but other than that, it was pretty good. **

**I think a part of my brain died when I realized that I'd been spelling some words in the HP books incorrectly AFTER HAVING READ THE SERIES LIKE FIVE HUNDRED TIMES! *lashes self with a wet noodle* So, for anyone's future reference, I'm putting a list here, both my mistakes and some I've noticed in other fanfics, in no particular order:**

**Animagus/Animagi (the A is capitalized)**

**Madam Pomfrey (I was spelling it Pomferey... _)**

**Ollivanders Wand Shop**

**The Marauder's Map (Even though it really should be Marauders' Map... Something I'll be changing. Maybe. IDK.)**

**Zonko's Joke Shop**

**Dervish and Banges**

**Honeydukes (no apostrophe)**

**Invisibility Cloak (Capital I, capital C)**

**Sneakoscope**

**grindylow**

**Patronus (capitalized)**

**Secret- Keeper (has a hyphen)**

**Great Hall (capitalized)**

**and all spells are italicized**

**I won't go back and change my mistakes, at least for a while. I feel like a friggin' idiot.**

**Anyway, to make up for the long wait, this is a REALLY long chapter, AND it has the POV of six people. Yeah, you heard me. :) Enjoy! Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Kwanza and Happy whatever else you happen to celebrate this time of year.**

**I'd also like to take a paragraph to say that I want to dedicate this chapter to the twenty-six lives lost in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Saying 'I'm sorry' probably sounds really hollow right now, but... It was a horrible thing. I can't imagine what the families must be going through. My thoughts and prayers are with them. The some of the adults had lived long lives and should have had more time left to them, and the others were just getting started. The kids all had their lives ahead of them. Family and friends of now lost wonderful people, and future meetings between them and others... I guess they won't happen now. ****God bless and bring them all safely to heaven.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.**

* * *

_Add the lacewing flies, then stew for ten minutes on low heat. The potion should have a very runny consistency and a color similar to an acidic yellow, with hints of bright green._

Sirius dropped the lacewing flies in, then nodded to Liz. She prodded the flames under the cauldron with her wand, lowering the heat of the flames so they changed from blue to orange.

"How much longer should it take?" Peter asked.

Sirius wiped his forehead as Liz consulted the book. "I think about forty-five minutes, if we don't mess up." She glanced up. "You know, we really only need two to make the potion." The Marauders had been in the roomy passage behind the mirror for almost half an hour now, working on the laxative liquid they'd feed to the bats. Or, rather, Sirius had been working on it while Liz helped. Remus and Peter had a tendency to let their cauldrons, and though James (Sirius felt a small thrill of pleasure whenever he thought about it) was a decent enough potion brewer, Sirius was undoubtedly the best out of all the Marauders.

"Actually," Sirius corrected Liz, "We only need one to make the potion. You're just helping."

Liz rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything.

"Either way," James said, "We still want to be here to watch, and to keep any and all explosions under control."

"Please, like I could blow up a potion," Sirius scoffed. He turned to add the dittany to the potion.

"Don't you think you're adding that a bit early?" Liz asked.

"Of course not," Sirius said, miffed. "What makes you say-?"

He never got to finish his sentence. There was a BANG like a gunshot, then a thick black cloud filled the air.

"Run!" Remus yelled. The Marauders dodged around the cauldron, which was beginning to bubble ominously. When they were barely thirty feet away, it erupted in a sickly yellow geyser, accompanied by more explosions. The Marauders were thrown forward, knocked off their feet by the blasts. Sirius' cheek scraped on the rough floor and he threw his arms over his head, trying to protect himself. He randomly wondered why the explosions weren't attracting any people, then decided they probably thought Peeves was messing around. Finally, when the explosions ceases, they picked themselves off the ground.

James gave a low whistle. "Shit."

Sirius had to agree. Although the potion and cauldron seemed to have disintegrated, which saved them the trouble of having to clean up, the blasts had left their mark. Deep cracks spiderwebbed across the wall, extending, presumably, up to the ceiling- not that Sirius could tell, since the top of the passage was hidden in shadows.

"Holy-" Liz peered into one of the cracks. "I can't tell how deep it is."

"Brilliant," Remus said dryly, clapping his hands slowly. "Ladies and gentlemen, the 'Almost got his Friends Killed' Award for the year goes to Sirius Black!"

Sirius wiped a hand over his face, feeling gritty soot beneath his fingers. His friends' faces were blackened with smoke, and he figured he didn't look much better. "Sorry, guys," he said dispiritedly. "Looks like the potion will have to wait until next weekend."

"At least we'll _live_ to see the weekend," Peter said, his teeth chattering. "Who's in favor of doing something less likely to kill us all?"

* * *

Remus couldn't believe his friends. Brewing a potion without a teacher's supervision that had exploded, and the next thing they wanted to do was work n the stupid Animagus project? Of course, once they'd set their minds on something, they never let it go. They'd brew that potion, just like they'd become Animagi… or die trying.

Remus shook his head. He was just being melodramatic. But still, his friends' pigheadedness worried him.

He tried not to show them how scared he was. If they'd been just a little slower, all of them could have been vaporized just as easily as the cauldron. It was a chilling thought.

"So," James said, settling cross-legged on the floor and pulling the appropriated library books out of his bag, "Who wants to try first?" He flipped to the page with the Patronus Charm.

"You mean try and fail?" Liz asked, sitting next to him. "Let's face it, I'll never get it!"

"You just need to keep trying, same as all of us," Sirius said, sitting on James' other side and dragging Peter down with him. "Besides, if you keep whining, you'll never get it!" Liz glared at him. Remus sighed, but he sat down, completing the circle.

"Okay, so I take it that means we have no volunteers?" James asked, looking around at them. "No? Fine then, it's just me." He consulted the Charms book, then pulled out his wand and stood up. After a moment of silence, his arm shot out. "Expecto Patronum!"

A thin silver vapor spurted from the tip of his wand before sputtering and dying out. James shook his wand angrily, then tried again with the same results.

"Lemme try," Sirius said, standing up. James plunked himself down, crossing his arms and sulking.

A crease appeared between Sirius' eyes as he concentrated. After what felt ilke an eternity, he raised his wand.

"Expecto Patronum!"

Remus yelped when something silver, something _massive,_ erupted from Sirius' wand. He barely made out four legs before Sirius gave a jubilant whoop and the Patronus vanished.

Did you see that!" Sirius danced gleefully on the spot. "I lost it when my concentration broke, but I definitely had something!" He punched the air.

"What were you thinking about?' Liz asked eagerly. Sirius hesitated.

"Erm, I forget," he said uncomfortably. Remus wasn't so sure, but he decided not to say anything.

"I want to try!" Peter said, leaping up. However, even emboldened as they were by Sirius' success, the only progress any of them made was Remus' first indistinct Patronus. The charm still remained outside of Peter's and Liz's grasp.

"Still, it's progress," James said happily as they slipped out from behind the mirror on their way to dinner.

"It's so frustrating," Sirius growled. "I got it once, so why can't I get it again?"

"At least you were able to make a corporeal Patronus," Remus pointed out. He felt that Sirius had the least cause to grumble, considering his earlier success.

"Once we have an idea of what our animals are supposed to be, we'll be able to actually perform the spell that allows us to transform, right?" Liz asked in an undertone.

"Yeah, why?" James asked.

"Just double-checking," Liz said. She sighed. "I guess it's going to be a while for me…"

"Stop being so pessimistic, it's getting annoying," Sirius said. Liz muttered something, probably uncomplimentary, under her breath.

The Marauders headed down to the Great Hall, passing friendly banter between them, but Remus wasn't really paying attention. The events of that afternoon kept replaying in his head: the explosion, the running… the only thing that differed from reality was that it ended with all five of them dying. It sent chills up his spine every time he thought about it.

"Hang on," Peter said before they entered the more traversed part of the castle, "We'd better clean up before anyone sees us like this." he indicated their sooty faces and singed robes.

"Good idea,' James said, pulling out his wand and rapping Sirius on the head. "_Scourgify._" The soot vanished.

"Was that really necessary?" Sirius asked, rubbing his head.

"Probably not," James admitted, turning to Liz and doing the same to her. When all five of them were presentable, they joined the throng of students flooding the corridors on their way to dinner.

"Sweet! Pot roast!" Sirius crowed as they took their seats.

"Do you think we'll have enough time to eat on Halloween before the potion kicks in?" Peter asked.

Remus thought about it. "I doubt it. My advice is to just eat quickly." The others nodded.

Remus felt a prickling sensation on the back of his neck, and he whipped around to meet Snape's gaze from across the room. After a moment, the Slytherin lowered his eyes to his food, but Remus still felt uneasy. There was something about Snape's smirk that he didn't like.

* * *

Lily bade her friends good-bye at the Great Hall's doors after dinner.

"You're sure you don't want us to wait?" Victoria asked.

"I'm sure. See you," Lily said. Sarah waved as she and Victoria climbed up the stairs.

Lily hovered by the doors, wondering what Severus wanted. He'd run into her on their way to diner, and he'd said he wanted to talk. So, here she was, waiting impatiently. What was taking him so long?

After a few minutes, Severus emerged from the Great Hall, accompanied by Avery and Mulciber. He caught Lily's eye and nodded to her. Halfway across the entrance hall, he shook the boys off and crossed over to Lily.

"Hey, Sev,' Lily said, smiling at him. She hadn't had a chance to talk to him for a while, and had been a little worried about their friendship.

"Hey, Lily,' Severus said. He was chewing on his lower lip, looking anxious.

"So, you said you wanted to talk to me?" Lily asked.

"Yeah. It's about those _Marauders._" He spat the last word like it was a curse.

Lily frowned. She didn't realize Severus didn't really want to talk- he just wanted information. "What about them? I know they're not very nice, but-"

"But what?" Severus interrupted her. "There's something funny going on with them.'

"Well, they're probably just planning their next prank-"

"That's not what I meant.' Severus paused. "Haven't you noticed Lupin and Auberey?"

"What about them?"

"Haven't you noticed anything strange about them?" Severus persisted. "Like, where they went on the twenty-third?"

Lily sighed. Severus had been grouchy ever since the beginning of the school year, and she suspected it had something to do with the dungbomb incident on the train. He was probably looking for an excuse to get the group in trouble- not that it would be that difficult to find one. "Lupin went to visit his sick grandmother, and Auberey was throwing up, so she went to the Hospital Wing."

Severus didn't say anything for a while. Finally, he said, "Thank you, Lily," and walked away.

Lily stared after her old friend incredulously. They hadn't had a proper chance to talk in nearly two months, and when they finally _did, _Severus was grilling her for information. Lily whirled furiously and kicked a suit of armor in the shin. Her eyes watered with pain and anger as the suit's helmet began to clatter in protest. Lily stomped off, though more slowly than she would have liked. Her toes really hurt.

* * *

James scratched his chin with his quill, then pushed his glasses up his nose. He was trying to pay attention to Professor Lovegood's lesson on nargles, because it was actually kind of interesting, but his attention kept drifting back to the Marauders' plans for Halloween. James glanced across the room at Sirius, whose shoulders were shaking with barely suppressed laughter. He checked his watch and sighed. Thirty more minutes until the lesson was over, and they'd have the rest of the day off, aside from the Astronomy class that night. he checked his watch again. Twenty-nine minutes. He groaned and dropped his head on the desk.

Twenty-eight watch checks later, the bell rang, and James erupted from his seat. He and the others met up by the door. Sirius and Liz had tears in their eyes, Peter looked baffled, and Remus looked exasperated.

"Can you believe her?" Remus asked. "Nargles, wrackspurts… next thing you know, she'll be insisting fairy tales are real!"

"Relax, Moony," Sirius said. "You just don't like her weird lessons because you've never heard of those creatures before!"

"That's not true," Remus protested feebly. James rolled his eyes.

"At least the lessons are interesting," he said.

"So, what do you guys want to do for our free period?" Liz asked.

Remus sighed. "I'm guessing you don't mean studying?"

"Nope."

James and Sirius exchanged looks. "How about we show you guys the new secret passage we discovered?" Sirius said.

"What?"

"We still have some time before dinner- come on!" James sprinted off, only occasionally checking over his shoulder to see if the others were keeping up.

"Where are we going?" Peter panted, falling further behind with each second. James, too excited to answer, sped up.

"James!" Liz yelled. "You're going to fast!"

"You're going too slow!" James yelled back, glancing behind him. A split second later, he slammed into something and landed hard on the cold flagstones.

"Ow!" a muffled voice cried. "Get off me!"

James picked himself up off the tiny first-year Gryffindor girl he'd run into. "Sorry," he said.

The girl stood and brushed herself off. "Watch where you're going!"

James winced as the rest of his friends caught up. "I said sorry," he repeated sheepishly. "I just didn't see you!"

The girl rolled her eyes. "That's obvious."

"I'm sure it was an accident," Remus said calmly, taking James' arm an easing him away. "Are you alright?' he added over his shoulder.

"No thanks to your friend," the girl replied, walking away in a huff.

"And that's why we look where we're going," Remus said, poking James in the chest.

"She's fine, what's the big deal?" James asked. Remus rubbed his eyes.

"So, now that we've caught up to you, will you _please _tell us where we're going?" Liz demanded.

"No," James said, setting off again, though this time at a more reasonable speed.

"The library?" Peter asked as they turned into the corridor that would take them there. "Bit of a change for you, isn't it?"

James snorted. "Please- like I'd ever willingly go to the library?"

Sirius elbowed him. James elbowed him back.

"Alright, fine," he conceded. "I did sneak out of our dorm a few nights ago to get that Charms book."

Three jaws dropped simultaneously. "So that's where you got it from!" Peter said.

"Where did you think it came from, the moon?" James asked. "Anyway, a few nights ago, me and Sirius-"

"Sirius and I," Remus corrected.

"So, _me and Sirius _accidentally set of the alarm when we took the books, and Filch came running. We got lucky enough to spot him coming out from behind the statue of Gregory the Smarmy."

Sirius coughed.

"Fine, Sirius saw him!" James threw his hands up in exasperation. "Anyway, here it is." He stopped in front of the statue.

"How do you open it?" Liz asked eagerly, examining the statue closely.

Sirius grinned. "Watch and learn." He pushed the button behind the left ear to open the passage.

* * *

_Add the lacewing flies…_

Liz swallowed hard as Sirius added the ingredients. It was at this part of the instructions that he'd managed to blow up the potion. Apparently, the rest of the Marauders were thinking the same thing, because they all took a noticeable step backwards. Liz glanced nervously at the wall. The cracks were still as large as ever, and she doubted it would be long, relatively speaking, before the tunnel caved in.

Liz could feel her palms sweating as she lowered the heat of the flames. If Sirius added the dittany too early…

The Marauders all held their breath, legs tensed and ready to run, as Sirius added the herb. After a lengthy silence, they allowed themselves to relax.

Sirius grinned. "See? I just needed to learn patience."

"Still do," Remus pointed out. He dodged Sirius' elbow.

The rest of the brewing went smoothly. When the potion was the color an consistency described in the textbook, Sirius collected it in a large flask swiped from Slughorn's office.

"Perfect," he decared, holding it up.

"How long will it keep for?" Peter asked as Liz and James began cleaning up.

"Two months," Sirius replied. "We'll have more than enough time."

"Let's leave the cauldron here," Remus said as James went to cover it with his Invisibility Cloak. "Then we won't have to smuggle it back up here for other stuff." He clapped a hand over his mouth, but it was too late.

"Great idea, thanks, Moony!"

Remus smacked himself on the forehead.

"Stop that," Sirius scolded as they stepped out from behind the mirror. "it's a great idea!"

"That's what worries me," Remus muttered.

Back in the common room, they passed by the girl James had run over, and Lily.

"You just need to ignore it, Mary," Lily was saying. "They're all jerks- well, Remus isn't too bad, I guess, but James and Sirius-"

"I knew you couldn't resist talking about me, Evans," James said, reaching up and rumpling his hair.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Keep dreaming, Potter."

"I will until it's reality, Lily-flower."

Sirius burst out laughing. "Oh, ye hopeless romantic." He shook his head. "Seriously, come up with some better pick-up lines."

James looked affronted. "I thought that was pretty good."

"No," Lily and Mary said.

"Guess I'll just have to keep trying, then," James said. "Come on." He jerked his head in the direction of the boys' staircase.

The Marauders headed up to the boys' room, where Sirius closed the door behind them.

"I've finally figured out how we're going to catch the bats on Halloween!" James said excitedly.

"Then tell us!" Sirius demanded. He dove onto his bed, bouncing limply before settling and looking expectantly at James. The others simply sat down.

"So, remember how we caught that boggart in a box?" James asked.

Liz and Sirius looked at one another. "Um, no. We weren't there, remember?" Liz knocked on her head.

"Well," James continued as though she hadn't said anything, "Mum and dad sent me another box, and it's about the same size… and I think I have a few more we can use…"

"That's great, James, but how do we catch the bats in the first place?" Remus asked.

"Two people- I'm thinking me and you- levitate… maybe Liz and Sirius... up to the ceiling, and they can catch the bats in their cloaks. They come back down when they catch something, and give the bats to Peter, who'll be in charge of putting the bats in the boxes."

"So, after we've caught all the bats, we'll feed them the poop potion as we release them?" Liz asked. James nodded.

"That's it!" he jabbed a finger in her direction. "We'll get to work about an hour before dinner, since that's how long it takes for the potion to kick in."

"You do realize that we'll probably be pooped on as well, right?" Remus asked warily.

James shrugged. "You'll just have to accept that we'll have to make some sacrifices. As long as it washes out, I really don't care." He checked his watch. "Come on- it's time for dinner!"

* * *

Peter shifted his weight from foot to foot impatiently. He and his friends had been waiting outside the Great Hall for nearly an hour, waiting for the teachers to finish decorating and leave. They hadn't expected the teachers to take this long, and were growing more nervous with each passing minute, wondering if they'd have to come up with a last-ditch plan.

"Let's check and see if they're done yet," James whispered. The Marauders shuffled closer to the door, only to leap backward as it was thrown open by Professor Slughorn. The fat teacher peered at the seemingly empty air, his eyes skirting right across the Marauders' faces. They waited with bated breath until he shrugged and turned away.

Professors McGonagall, Sprout, and Flitwick followed soon after, shutting the doors behind them as they the teachers were out of sight, the Marauders moved forward again.

"This is why we need to get started on that map," Sirius said in a low voice as they pulled the doors open just wide enough for them to squeeze through. "We could've just kept an eye on the map and spent all that stakeout time on more productive things."

Peter barely heard him. he was too busy staring at the decorations. "Whoa..."

Floating jack-o-lanterns the size of garden sheds turned slowly in the air, leering at them. The anticipated swarm of bats fluttered over their heads, causing the candles in the pumpkins to flicker ominously. Black and orange garlands were draped between the wall torches, which had been replaced with skeletal hands clutching dripping black candles. Something red oozed from the cracks in the walls at odd intervals, and on closer inspection, Peter realized it was blood- or at least something horribly like it.

"The teachers really got into it this year," Liz commented as she pulled the Cloak off of them.

"I love the torches,' Sirius said, running over to one to inspect it more closely. Noticing the others' sidelong glances, he said, "What?"

"Nothing," James replied. He set his bag on the floor and pulled out the flask full of laxative liquid. Peter set down the boxes he'd been carrying and pulled his Herbology gloves out of his pocket. Liz and Sirius, who would also be handling the bats, did the same. They didn't think the bats would bite, but it couldn't hurt to play it safe.

"Ready," Sirius said, grabbing his winter cloak. Liz nodded agreement.

Remus and James levitated the bat catchers into the air as Peter watched apprehensively. He wasn't quite sure about his job in stuffing bats into the boxes. He didn't really like rodents.

"Set us down on the pumpkins," Sirius called down after he tried to net some bats in his cloak and missed. "You can catch us if we fall."

"Don't lose your balance," James said, moving Sirius closer to a pumpkin. Sirius grabbed onto the stem and scrabbled up the side. Remus walked to the other end of the Hall, Liz bobbing above him like some strange balloon. She managed to snag a handhold in one of the carved eyes and was able to climb up from there.

"I bet I can catch more than you," Sirius taunted as swung away from Liz and flew nearly straight at him.

"Bet you can't," she called back. Sirius cast his cloak out like a fishing net, trapping four or five bats. Peter let out a cheer as James levitated Sirius back to the ground. Sirius ran over to Peter, being careful not to let the struggling bats escape. He stuck a hand in the wriggling cloak and produced a large brown bat. Peter flinched when the bat sank its teeth into Sirius' thumb, but the gloves seemed to be doing their job.

"Here," Sirius said, passing the bat to Peter. Peter shuddered, but clamped a hand around the creature, pinning its wings to its sides so it couldn't get away. Trying not to hurt it, he opened the box, placed the bat inside, and slammed the lid before it could fly free.

"Good job," Sirius said, handing another bat to Peter. Peter swelled with pride at the words.

Across the room, Liz whooped as she snagged several bats. After Sirius finished passing his load to Peter, James sent him back up to the pumpkin while Liz came down.

"Only three?" She said disappointedly as she handed the animals to Peter.

"You'll get more," he reassured her.

Despite their initial success, catching bats soon proved to be more difficult than it seemed. As the number of bats dwindled, Sirius and Liz had a harder time catching them. At last, there was only a solitary bat left flapping drunkenly around the room.

"Come on," Peter muttered anxiously, watching as Sirius turned to follow the bats' progress. "Just a little closer..."

Sirius threw his cloak, but the bat veered away. Sirius swore as it fluttered toward Liz, who lunged for it. She caught it in her hands, but her balance was completely thrown. She creamed as she toppled off the pumpkin.

"_Wingardim Leviosa_!" Remus yelled. The spell caught Liz when she was barely a foot above the ground. Her eyes were huge as she stumbled forward and thrust the bat at Peter.

"Here," she said shakily. Once Peter had taken the bat, she laughed nervously. "Well, that was fun. Let's not do it again."

Not wanting to be outdone by Liz, Sirius dove off his pumpkin. "Geronimo!" he yelled as he plummeted to the ground.

"_Wingardium Leviosa_," James said lazily. Sirius laughed as he landed lightly on the floor.

"That was brilliant!" he said. "I'd kind of like to do it again."

"We have work to do," James reminded him. Sirius shrugged and uncorked the potion, then poured some onto a teaspoon. Peter, who hadn't put the last bat in a box, held the thing out. Sirius poured the potion into the bat's mouth, then Peter let go and it flew away.

They repeated the process with all one hundred and fifty-two bats (James kept count) until all of them had been dosed with the laxative liquid. Finally, when the last bat had been released, Peter stripped off his gloves with a huge grin on his face. He hadn't messed up, the plan was going smoothly, and best of all, they were going to get away with it. The marauders were going to do nothing but claim innocence after the prank happened, since none of them wanted another month's worth of detentions when their last punishments had just ended.

"How much longer until dinner?" Liz asked as James threw the Cloak over them.

"Thirty minutes," he replied. He cracked the door open and peeked out. "The coast is clear," he said. They stepped out and Peter carefully shut the door. All they had to do now was wait.

* * *

"Auberey," Lily warned when she intercepted the Marauders on their way to dinner, "I swear, if you guys pulled another prank-"

"Relax, Evans," Liz said, waving her off. "We couldn't think of anything to do. Shame, really."

Lily gave her the stink-eye. "I'm just saying, if the pumpkins explode again, I'll know it was you." She walked off, throwing a dirty look over her shoulder before joining Sarah and Victoria.

"Well," Sirius remarked, "That was friendly."

The Marauders merged with the students making their way down to dinner. Liz heard many _oohs_ as everyone saw the decorations. She had to admit, they were pretty impressive. She risked a glance skyward as they entered the Great Hall and spotted the bats swarming near the Slytherin table. She stifled a snicker as she and the boys sat down.

"How long do you think we'll have to eat?" she muttered to Remus. He shrugged.

"Better eat quickly," he advised.

When all the students had sat down, the plates filled with the Halloween feast; hot, chunky stews, fluffy white rolls, baked potatoes with every garnish imaginable, steaks and pork chops... Liz loaded her plate with some of everything, though she was careful to avoid the rarer pieces of meat. Even though she found she no longer liked her steak well done, it wasn't something she was quite ready to accept about herself.

After about ten minutes had passed with nothing happening, Liz slowed in her eating and glanced nervously at the bevy. Had something gone wrong with the potion? The Marauders exchanged worried looks. Their prank might have turned out to be a dud after all.

"Why isn't it working?" Sirius asked quietly.

No sooner had he said the words, they heard a shriek come from the Slytherin table. One of the older girls was waving her hands around, narrowly missing her friends' heads. her platinum blonde hair was covered with a nasty, dark goop.

"Something just landed in my hair!" the girl yelled as the entire Hall fell silent. Sirius' face turned red from the effort of not laughing and giving them away.

SPLAT!

A Hufflepuff boy yelped as _something_ landed on his shoulder. His friend looked up just in time to receive an eyeful.

"The bats!" a girl somewhere screamed, diving for cover. Her yell was the cue for the rest of the students to completely freak out. That was when the bats let loose. Poop bombs were dropping from above as the bats headed for the Gryffindor table. Liz, along with almost everyone else in her House, dived under the table to avoid the barrage.

Liz found herself nose to nose with Lily, whose eyes were blazing with anger. "You did this, didn't you?" she yelled as poop continued to fall from the sky.

"No!" Liz cried. "Do you really think we'd do _this_? It's disgusting!" She yelped when some guano landed on her foot, which she quickly pulled under the table. "_Scourgify_."

"Those pumpkins were pretty disgusting," Remus pointed out. He looked quite agitated, playing his part well. Lily seemed to reconsider for a moment, but then James and Sirius joined them under the table. Liz winced, certain that they would accidentally give something away. She needn't have worried.

"Can you believe this?" Sirius laughed, cleaning his hair with a quick spell. "This is hilarious! I wish we'd thought of this."

Lily's eyes widened. "You...didn't do this?" she asked hesitantly.

"Shame, really," James said regretfully, pushing his glasses up his nose. Liz almost didn't believe it- Lily fell for it!

"What's taking the teachers so long?" Someone farther along the Gryffindor table yelled.

Lily and the Marauders looked at one another nervously. "I'll look," James offered.

"Rather you than me," Sirius said. James scooted closer to the bench and stuck his head out. Almost immediately, he tried to pull it back in, but cracked it on the underside of the table.

"OW!" he yelled, sitting up. The people closest to him recoiled and/or gagged- his face was smothered in guano.

Liz swallowed the bile threatening to spew out of her mouth as James cleaned himself off. "That's revolting," she choked.

"So, what's going on?" a third year boy next to them asked.

"The teachers are having to vanish the bats one by one," James reported. "And they're having a hard time of it because they're so small and keep flying around."

Soon, the word had spread. How long they would be stuck under the tables, though, nobody knew. Somebody suggested someone look again to see how the teachers were doing, but nobody, especially James, was willing to get an eyeful of poop.

"Guess we'll be stuck here for a while," James said casually, bringing an arm up and draping it casually around Lily's shoulders. She threw him off, but couldn't move away since the students were packed so tightly together.

"Er," said Sirius, looking around, "Where's Peter?"

"Peter?" Liz yelled. She winced. Her voice seemed really loud in the confined space.

"I'm here!" Peter's muffled voice came from several feet away.

"Are you all right?" Remus asked.

"Bit squashed, but yeah."

As the students began to call out to their friends and realize that they were no longer in danger of being hit as long as they stayed under the tables, boredom began to set in. Liz could feel her leg beginning to cramp as she tried to avoid knocking elbows with James and Remus. At one point, Sirius sneezed, his head jerking forward and nearly colliding with Lily's ear.

Finally, when Liz realized the splattering sounds had stopped, she cautiously stuck her head out from the safety of the table to see the teachers' wands still raised. She snorted when she saw a blob of poop sliding down Professor McGonagall's hat.

One bat was left. It flew wildly around the Hall, hovering in place occasionally to drop more bombs. After a few seconds, it vanished without a trace. A wave of Professor Flitwick's wand removed all the poop, and an instant later, the ruined food disappeared as well.

"It's safe to come out now," Professor Dumbledore said. Heads began to poke out from under the tables like curious gophers. The disheveled students climbed stiffly to their feet, complaining loudly.

"Silence!" Suddenly, it was so quiet in the Hall that Liz almost expected to hear another splat.

Professor McGonagall stepped forward. "There has never been an incident like this at Hogwarts in all my memory," she said, her nostrils flaring. "Never- except for last year." her gaze zeroed in on the Marauders, and the other students hurriedly parted so they wouldn't get caught in the crossfire.

James, liz thought, was a pretty good actor under pressure. "Honest, Professor, it wasn't us!" he cried. "We wanted to pull a prank this year but we couldn't think of anything, we were just looking forward to the feast!"

Liz's eyes widened when Lily stepped forward. "I don't- I don't think it was them, Professor," she said grudgingly. "Potter here actually offered to see if it was safe to come out and got a face full of, er, stuff..." She grimaced, though whether it was because of the memory of the incident or her disbelief of the Marauders' innocence, Liz wasn't sure.

The students began to murmur as Lily's words sank in. Professor McGonagall opened her mouth, but Professor Dumbledore held up his hand. "Innocent until proven guilty, Minerva," he said. McGonagall looked like he'd told her to eat dragon dung. "Now then, since we've cleaned up the Great Hall, I see no reason as to why we shouldn't continue with our feast!" At his words, the desserts appeared on the tables. The students sat down, many beginning to eat, though some looked at the food with a nauseated expression.

Sirius' grin looked like it was about to fall off, it was so huge.

"What's so funny?" Liz asked, cutting up an apple pie and passing slices to her friends.

"That Slytherin girl who got hit?" Sirius indicated the girl with his fork. Liz looked over her shoulder at the haughty blonde, who was looking at the Prefect Malfoy with a simpering expression.

"Isn't that your cousin?" James asked. "Nasty something?"

Now that James had said something, Liz recognized the girl. Sirius had pointed her out once last year, but only in passing. Liz hadn't given much thought to her. She could see the family resemblance, though- the girl and Sirius both had aristocratic features; high cheekbones, thin noses, and arched eyebrows. There was a big difference, though, besides the hair. Sirius' cousin held herself very formally, much like little Regulus at the train station.

"Narcissa," Sirius corrected James. he grimaced. "She got engaged to Lucius Malfoy last summer. They'll be married as soon as Cissy's left Hogwarts."

"Bit young for that, aren't they?" Peter asked.

Sirius snorted. "In our family? No." He put on a pompous air. "As purebloods, it is our duty to marry those of noble blood and keep the line pure." He shook his head. "It's such a load of bullshit. I'm telling you, my parents will try to set me up once I'm older. I just hope they don't pick a relative."

Remus spat out a bit of pumpkin juice. "What?" he choked, wiping his mouth.

"I know, right? It's disgusting. My parents were second cousins...I think."

"That would explain your weirdness," James teased. Sirius reached over the table and swatted him.

They stayed long after the students, loading up on seconds to make up for their lost dinner. Finally, their stomachs bulging, they made their way back to Gryffindor Tower.

"Good job, by the way, you guys," James said sleepily. "Jack-o-Lantern," he added to the Fat Lady. The Marauders helped one another through the portrait hole, and parted at the staircases.

Liz fell asleep quickly, but for a short while, she wasn't entirely sure if she was dreaming. James was sitting on his bed, his eyes full of laughter as he explained the prank. It seemed very realistic.

"You just have to accept that we'll have to make some sacrifices," he said.

Liz's mouth went dry as the room dissolved in a whirlwind of black smoke. She heard pounding footsteps, and James' voice yelling: "Go! Run! I'll hold him off-"

A high, cold laugh-

A woman screaming-

Indistinct yelling-

A baby's cry-

Liz woke up, her heart racing. She sat up slowly, forcing herself to breathe normally. She pulled the hangings open to see if she'd woken the others, but none of her roommates had stirred.

She lay back on the bed, turning the dream over in her mind. Was James going to sacrifice himself? For what? Liz pounded her pillow in frustration. Why couldn't her stupid visions be a little more accurate?

It was a long time before she fell back into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

**A/N: So, no idea when I'm gonna get chapter fourteen finished and posted (It's gonna be a Quidditch one this time), but it should definitely be by New Year's- hopefully earlier. I'm definitely gonna work on it during Christmas. It's my most FAVORITE holiday! (I really hope I get a Marauder's Map- I really want to know what that Room of Doom thing is...) And I already got some preemptive presents- _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ and _Quidditch Through the Ages!_ *does a happy dance* Hmm, I would certainly have a lot of free time. But for now, this is my Christmas present to you. Hope you enjoyed!**

**So, comments, questions, and suggestions are all welcome! I'm not going to be replying to reviews that were left in my absence, but I would like to say something to StarbellFairy-**

**Yeah, Liz was a Sue *_facepalm_* but I'd like to think I've gotten much better at writing for her. Balance is the key, amirite? I was a stupid noob author at the beginning. Sue me. *rim shot***

**All of your reviews, everyone, bring huge smiles to my face. I love hearing your feedback! :) And you're all awesome for not giving up on me.**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	13. First Match

**A/N: Wow. Wow! It's Christmas! :D SO HAPPY! Hermione's wand, Marauder's Map, Sorting Hat, AND Lego Harry Potter (1-4 & 5-7) for the Wii. I _love_ Christmas!**

**Allrighty, nobody cares that I'm currently giggling and dancing around like an idiot right now. Probably because the rest of you are busy doing the same :P**

**Disclaimer: *eyeroll* I'm really not sure why we have to go through this. Blabiddy blahbiddy blah. I don't own. There.**

* * *

James ducked the Bludger sent his way by the Slytherin Beater and zoomed up the Quidditch Pitch, the wind whipping his hair off his forehead. One of the Chasers threw the Quaffle his way, and a second later, he felt the _thud_ as it slammed into his outstretched arms. Grinning so much that his cheeks began to feel sore, he flew toward the goalposts, relishing the shouts and cheers that erupted from the crowd.

He drew back and threw as hard as he could. It was a perfect shot- the Quaffle didn't even graze the sides of the hoop as it flew through. James wheeled his broom around, eager to receive the praises of his teammates, but was met with the terrifying sight of six angry Gryffindors streaking through the air.

"You bloody idiot!" Wood bellowed, grabbing James around the throat and shaking him. "You just scored for the other team!"

"GAH!" James sat bolt upright, slapping away imaginary enemies. He looked around, relieved to find himself safe in his bed.

"James?" Sirius' sleepy voice drifted across the dormitory. "Everything all right, mate?"

"Yeah. Just go back to sleep."

"Nrrrrrgh..." Sirius was snoring before James had finished speaking. Sometimes, it was nice to have a friend who never really woke up in the middle of the night.

James lay in bed for several minutes, willing himself to get back to sleep, but he was finally forced to admit to himself that there was no way it would be happening anytime soon. Sighing, he pulled open the hangings and crossed over to the windowsill, where the water jug was. Ignoring the goblets beside it, he poured at least half of the contents into his mouth. His thirst sated, he sat on the sill, looking out over the Hogwarts grounds. The Whomping Willow's branches rustled in the wind as a quick gust blew past, forcing the trees in the Forbidden Forest to bend alarmingly. James swallowed. All the wind would make flying conditions rough that day.

Quidditch. Never before had James dreamed that that one word could scare him as much as it was now. Sure, he put on a brave (maybe cocky) air for the other Marauders, and though he was excited about his first game, he was also extremely nervous. What if he _did_ score for the other team? Even if nothing _that_ embarrassing happened, what if he screwed up and passed the Quaffle to Slytherin? Or completely missed a pass that was meant for him? Snape would never let him live it down. Worse, he would lose all credibility in his friends' eyes. There was no way he'd be able to go through with it. How could he have been so stupid, trying out for the team in his second year?

James stayed by the window until the sun began to creep over the horizon. His eyes began to droop with fatigue. Finally, he stumbled back to bed.

Unfortunately, although he was able to sleep for another hour, it felt like only a few minutes before Liz was banging on the door, yelling at the boys to get up.

"Oh, Jaaaaames..." Sirius said in a sing-song voice as they were getting dressed.

"What?"

"It's Quiiiiiiiiidditch today! Aren't you excited?"

James grinned, refusing to let the apprehension show. "Duh! Isn't this what I signed up for?"

_Hell no!_ A voice in his head said.

_Shut up_, he thought.

James pulled on some robes, not really bothering to wear anything that matched. After all, as soon as breakfast was over, he'd be going to the locker rooms to get changed.

The boys found Liz waiting for them in the common room. They headed down to breakfast, Liz, Sirius, and Petter chattering excitedly about the upcoming match. James didn't join in like he normally did. Remus must have noticed, because he gave him an encouraging smile.

"Don't worry," he said quietly. "You'll be brilliant."

"Thanks," James whispered back.

He found that his appetite was as good as ever once the Marauders had sat down to eat. Bacon, sausages, toast, potatoes, kippers- everything within his reach disappeared into his mouth. He only stopped when he felt a large, calloused hand on his shoulder.

"You'd better stop eating," David said sternly. "I don't think you'll be able to get off the ground with all that food in your stomach."

"Sorry," James said automatically. He set his fork down and folded his hands neatly in his lap. David shook his head and walked over to Corey Spinnet, the third Chaser for Gryffindor.

In way too short a time, James found himself walking down to the Quidditch Pitch with his friends.

"Good luck!" Peter cheered as they split off to get get seats.

"Not that you'll need it," Sirius added. James waved to them and headed for the locker rooms.

The rest of the team was already assembled. David and Corey, of course; Ashton Leigh, a stocky blonde sixth year boy who had been a Beater for the team since his third year; Michael Boot, the Beater who had stolen Sirius' spot; Warren Warner, a boy built like a stick but was a wicked fast Keeper; and Naomi Vuong, a slim Asian girl who was a wicked fast Seeker.

"All right, guys," David said, looking around at his team, "First match of the season. We've been practicing for this since tryouts, and I'm confidant that our new members will do very well."

James swallowed.

"Let's do this!" David yelled, pumping his fist in the air. The rest of the team cheered. Nothing could get them psyched up as much as a match against Slytherin.

They shouldered their brooms and marched onto the field. Almost at once, they stumbled under the force of the great gusts of wind. It hadn't been audible in the locker rooms, but it had definitely picked up. James wouldn't be surprised if at least one player fell off their broom. From the opposite side, the Slytherins struggled through the wind as well, their emerald robes whipping crazily. They weren't the only ones, though- James had to clam his arms at his sides to keep his robes from flying into his eyes.

David and Gwenog Jones, who was the Slytherins' captain, shook hands. Gwenog smiled nastily at David, who stared coldly back.

"Mount your brooms," Madam Hooch said. James was almost thrown off his feet when he lifted a foot to climb onto his Cleansweep Four. This was certainly going to be an interesting match.

The wind howled when Madam Hooch raised her whistle to her lips, drowning out the shrill blast. James kicked off, fighting to keep his broom straight as he rose in the air.

James only heard snippets of the commentary, the wind was so loud. He ducked as a Gryffindor banner went shooting past his head, probably ripped from its owner's grasp.

"And captain David Wood of Gryffindor-"

James swerved around a Slytherin Chaser and grabbed the Quaffle. Corey had meant to pass it to David, but the wind had blown the Quaffle about eight feet to the left.

"-Potter, new to the team this year-"

James looped around one of the Slytherins and handed the Quaffle off to Corey. Corey tried to yell something at him, but the wind snatched the words away, along with James. He tumbled through the air, barely managing to hold onto his broom as he was tossed about like a leaf on the wind. He managed to gain control just in time to see Corey get hit by a Bludger.

"-and Spinnet's hit! Quaffle now in Slytherin's possession-"

* * *

"There's no way this can be safe!" Remus yelled above the crowd and the wind.

"That's Quidditch!" Sirius yelled back. "James'll be lucky if he doesn't get blown away, though!"

"What?"

"What?"

* * *

James could feel his broom being buffeted sideways as he raced to catch up with Montague. The burly Slytherin was heavy enough that he wasn't affected nearly as much by the turbulence. As a general rule, Quidditch players had to be light and fast, but in conditions like these, having a couple of extra pounds was extremely useful. Maybe James could turn that to his advantage, though; if he could tail Montague closely enough, maybe the bigger boy could provide a little cover from the wind. As long as he wasn't caught by a cross breeze, in theory, it would work.

James altered his course slightly so he was heading straight for Montague's back. As he fell into place behind the Slytherin, James felt the difference almost immediately. He was able to put on speed, zipping right over Montague's head and snatching the Quaffle from under his arm. He didn't stick around to see what Montague's reaction was.

"Cover me!" James yelled to David. David, who had apparently seen James' idea, waved Corey over. The two older boys flew a little ahead of James, one on either side, providing protection from both headwinds and cross breezes. A Bludger came hurtling toward them, but Ashton intercepted it and sent it after Gwenog.

"Split!" David yelled as the Chasers neared the hoops. He and Corey veered off in opposite directions right before they would have crossed the line and provoked a foul. The Keeper waited in front of the middle hoop, sneering as James prepared to throw. James feinted, then threw for the center hoop as the Keeper dived to protect the left.

"And James Potter scores! Ten- zero to Gryffindor!"

James didn't want to lift his arms in a victory salute for fear of being blown away, but he let out a whoop of exhilaration as he, David, and Corey regrouped to fend off the Slytherin's counterattack.

"Same plan as before!" David yelled. "Corey, since you and I are bigger, we'll cover for Potter. Got it?"

"Got it!" they yelled back.

"Let's go!" The three split to mark a different target. James found himself behind Montague again. Since the Chaser on the far side of the field held the Quaffle, James decided that there wasn't any reason to reveal himself to Montague until the ball came their way.

James tailed Montague so closely that his Cleansweep's handle was almost touching the twigs of Montague's broom.

"Flint in possession of the Quaffle-" The wind drowned out the commentator for a moment, and when it died down, James groaned. "Slytherin scores!"

James broke away from Montague and joined David and Corey at the Gryffindor hoops. Warren Warner threw the Quaffle to David, who passed it to James.

They flew low to the ground this time, trying to minimize their chances of being attacked from below. David must have tipped off Ashton and Michael, because the two Beaters flew above them, ready for trouble. The Gryffindor team was unstoppable.

* * *

"Blimey! He scored again!" Sirius jumped up and down, almost getting knocked off his feet by the wind. "Go James!"

"If Naomi catches the Snitch now, she'd save them a lot of trouble!" Liz yelled, grabbing the back of Sirius' cloak to keep him from falling forward onto the field.

"Come on, James! You can do it!" Peter screamed.

* * *

The Slytherins had caught on to their strategy by now. They were targeting James as much as they could, even when he wasn't in possession of the Quaffle. Ashton and Michael had to abandon the other players to protect James, who was finding Bludgers coming at him from all directions. The Slytherin Beaters had completely forgotten the other Gryffindors, they were so fixated on getting James.

James scored again. Tenty- ten. Thirty-ten.

"Duck!" Ashton yelled, swinging at an approaching Bludger. With a loud _CRACK_, it zoomed toward the Slytherin Keeper and slammed into his stomach, leaving the way clear for James. Forty- ten.

Fifty.

Sixty.

"The Snitch!"

James startled as Naomi flew so close to him, her hair whipped across his face, blinding him. She flattened herself to her broom, somehow managing to fly straight as she reached out and caught the elusive golden ball.

"GRYFFINDOR WINS!"

James and the rest of his team were relieved to find themselves on solid ground again. He and Naomi found themselves swamped as the rest of the students rushed onto the field to congratulate the winners.

"Brilliant catch, Naomi!"

"You scored so many times!"

"Go, Potter!"

James allowed himself to be lifted onto the shoulders of his Housemates, grinning widely. He didn't even remember being scared earlier that morning. This was, he thought, definitely the best day of his life.

* * *

"Wow, James!" Liz cheered when the Marauders managed to get away from the crowd. "That was brilliant!"

"You were so amazing!" Peter said, his pink face shining.

Sirius was about to offer his own congratulations, but a sour taste filled his mouth when James smirked at Peter.

"Of course I'm amazing! Didn't you see me? I mean, once David and Corey saw how awesome I am, they let me take all the shots!"

"Yeah," Sirius said dully. "You were great." Remus looked at him curiously. Sirius forced a smile on his face. "I'm happy for you. Really."

* * *

**A/N: Short chapter, but Quidditch can drag on with too much description. Anyways, I have all the rest of part two planned out, and will start on chapter fifteen later today.**

**Happy Christmas!**

**-Dndchk**


	14. No Mistletoe, Still Love

**A/N: Finally! It snowed! I'm so happy- we haven't had a proper snowfall in Indiana for EVER. :( But it's snowing now! Yay! Foofooman3 (my little brother) threw a snowball at my window to wake me up. I opened said window and asked him if he could toss another one up so I could munch on it while he ran around outside. I did eat some of it, but when he came under my window, I threw the snowball at him and hit him in the arm. Ahh, sweet, sweet revenge.**

**But yeah, the snow got me in the mood to write. Here ya go!**

**I got one of my friends started on the Harry Potter books a couple of months ago and she's on book five now. Good news- she's now a HUGE Marauders fan, and now calls me Moony (she's Padfoot). When we watched the third movie, we had fun complaining about it, because it obviously hasn't already gotten enough hate from the fandom :P We watched GoF yesterday, and she's about halfway through OotP. Me excite!**

**So, there's a similar scene to my short story I'm Still a Marauder, which I wrote for the Marauder's Companion by Mibamonster. I thought Peter needed a fluffy story, since like i've said before, I don't think he was a bad person until he got older. Until then, he was just an adorable goober. *shrugs* But that's just me.**

**Oh, and I felt Part One and Part Two were blah titles. So I changed it. You have been told.**

**Disclaimer: Oh, sure, I own Harry Potter. Also, the sky rains cheesecake. Uh- huh.**

* * *

Gryffindor was in the lead for the Quidditch Cup. James wouldn't stop bragging about his amazing talents, and although Liz felt he had every right to be proud, it did start to get pretty irritating when he still wouldn't shut up a week later.

"I can't wait until Christmas!" Peter said one afternoon when they heard Professor McGonagall was coming around with the list of students who would be staying over break.

"You guys aren't going to stay over break, are you?" James looked at Peter, Liz, and Remus, his brow furrowing.

"Well, it's not like I'm going home," Sirius said, not looking up from the parchment he was folding.

"Didn't I ask you?" James cried. He rubbed his face. "Merlin, Sirius, I _thought_ I'd asked you already!"

"Asked me what?"

"Don't you want to come to my house for break?" James said eagerly. "Mum said she doesn't want everyone over during break- sorry-" he added, shooting an apologetic glance at the other three, "But she did say you're all welcome to come over for Christmas dinner, you and your families!"

"Sounds great," Sirius said, grinning.

"Awesome," Liz said. "I know Chris would love that- he's been dying to meet the rest of you."

Sirius suddenly stopped fiddling with the parchment. "Wait a second- what about the wedding?"

"We-" James dropped his head onto the table with a thunk. "Crap, I forgot about that."

"We'll work something out." Liz got up from the hearth rug and stretched, then glanced out the window. Her heart leaped when she saw fat white flakes drifting through the sky. "It's snowing!"

She'd said the magic words. The Marauders, along with a few first years who had been hanging out in the common room, rushed to the window, jostling one another in an attempt to see out. Liz wriggled between Sirius and Peter and pressed her face to the glass.

"Do you think there'll be enough for a snowball fight tomorrow before classes?" Peter asked.

"That would be brilliant," one of the first years, Mary, said.

"I'd like to build a snowman," a small boy piped up.

Liz glanced behind her and cringed when she saw Remus hunched over his book, his back turned to the window, refusing to look at the snow. She left the crowd and walked over to him.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

"Yeah, fine," He answered tightly.

"Is it...?" She gestured towards the window.

"Yeah."

Liz shuffled her feet uncomfortably. Unsure of what to say, she finally gave Remus an awkward pat on the shoulder, then rejoined the others at the window.

* * *

Peter sighed and kicked some snow away from the foot of the beach tree. The Christmas holiday was only a day away, but despite the approaching date of separation, he found himself alone. Again.

It wasn't like he didn't try to be good enough for the others, but it seemed like he would never measure up. If _Remus_ had accidentally spilled food on a girl in the middle of the Great Hall, he would have apologized and helped her clean her robes. If it had been James or Sirius- well, if it was one of them, the spilled food wouldn't have been an accident. But when Melissa Zambrose had smiled at him at breakfast earlier that day as he was leaving with the others, his hands full with a basket of dripping hot cross buns, and, startled by her sudden show of teeth, he stumbled over the hem of his robes and ended up dumping the entire basket all over her. Peter was mortified. He'd been trying to work up the courage to ask her out for almost a month, and then he had to go make a fool of himself. James, Sirius, and Liz had been too busy laughing at him to do anything, but Remus, bless him, had quickly cleaned up the mess, then ushered Peter out of the Great Hall, the persistent laughter echoing up the stairs.

"How's it possible for anyone to be so clumsy?" Sirius snickered when he, James, and Liz had caught up to them. Peter's face had turned scarlet.

Now, not too long ago, James and Sirius had shaken him off to do Merlin knows what. Remus was in the Hospital Wing, recovering from the full moon, as was Liz. Peter privately thought she was just being lazy and was using the day to sleep.

Peter cleared a bare patch on the ground and sat, hugging his knees to his chest for warmth. He wished he'd thought to bring a warmer cloak. He stared out over the lake, thinking that its icy surface would be perfect for sliding on, but he just wasn't in the mood.

A shadow fell in front of him. Peter looked up, and choked and quickly jumped to his feet, stammering apologies. Melissa was standing there, her caramel curls dusted with snow. She grinned shyly at him.

"I'm so sorry about breakfast," Peter babbled. "I wasn't watching where I was going, I'm just really clumsy, and-"

"Peter, I'm not mad," Melissa laughed.

Peter shut his mouth quickly.

"Can I sit down?" She indicated the clear spot under the tree. Peter nodded. She sat and brushed away some more snow so Peter could sit next to her.

"So, er, are you going home for the holidays?" Peter asked.

"No, I'm going to keep my friend Amelia company," Melissa said. "But that's okay. Once most of us found out that the infamous Marauders wouldn't be here over Christmas, I think that's what convinced a lot of people to stay."

Peter laughed. "Well, we wouldn't do anything to ruin anyone's holidays," he said. "I mean, we did pull a prank last Christmas-"

"Oh, that's right, the iced- over Great Hall?"

"Yeah." Peter frowned. Something Melissa had said was bothering him, how a lot of people weren't going home for Christmas. "Why are there so many people staying here? I mean, with You- Know- Who killing so many people... I kind of thought that people would want to be with their families."

Melissa sighed. "I don't know. Maybe the parents told their kids to stay here because it's safer."

Peter started when Melissa's elbow accidentally hit him. He blushed furiously; he'd never ben able to hod a proper conversation with a pretty girl before.

Maybe it was his friends' taunts, or the thought of not seeing her for several weeks, or maybe it was a sliver of bravery that the Sorting hat had recognised, but before he lost his nerve, Peter blurted, "Doyouwannagooutwithme?"

"What?" Melissa asked, though her grin gave her away. "I thought i heard you ask if you wanted to go out with me?"

Peter nodded, then ducked his head, fighting the urge to just get up and run away.

"I- I'd like that." Melissa gave his hand a small squeeze, then stood up. "I have to go- I promised Lana I'd help her pack."

"I'll write to you," Peter said.

"We'll see each other later today. And early tomorrow," Melissa said.

"Oh, right!" Peter jumped to his feet. He noticed, not for the first time, that he was a little bit taller than Melissa. "Actually, I was going to go back to the castle, anyway."

They walked back together, shooting furtive glances at each other the whole way. When they reached the entrance hall, Melissa headed down to the basement while Peter went upstairs to Gryffindor Tower.

"Hey, guys!" Peter yelled as he fell through the portrait hole. "You'll never guess what- guys?"

A couple of fourth years stared at him from one of the tables. Other than them, the common room was empty.

"Sorry," Peter muttered, going over to the sofa. He lay down and put his hands behind his head, staring up at the ceiling, wondering where the others were.

* * *

"Okay," James said, looking around the room, then back to the book in his hand, "I think it would be easiest to practice what we're doing in a small room before we try to map the entire castle."

"So, do you want to include furniture on the map, or not?" Sirius asked.

James wrinkled his nose. "Nah, I don't think so. I mean, furniture can be moved around and stuff. We're going to want this map to be as reliable as possible for a long time."

"Makes sense." Sirius got up and walked around the room, inspecting the walls and window.

"We're going to want to come up with symbols to show windows and stairs and such on here, too," James added. He pulled out a quill and a piece of scrap parchment. "Any ideas?"

Sirius walked back over to him and bent over the parchment. "For the windows, I was thinking something like this..." He took the quill and drew a thick line, then a shallow rectangle jutting out from it. "This here would be a wall," he said, pointing with the nib to the line, "And the box would show a window."

James nodded and took the quill back. "Stairs could look like this," he added, drawing a succession of lines that grew progressively shorter. "Short end is down."

"Doors could probably look like this." Sirius took the quill back to sketch his idea.

They spent almost an hour coming up with various symbols to denote secret passages, suits of armor, trick stairs, portrait doors, and everything else they could think of.

"That's good for now," James said after half an hour. "We can think of other stuff later."

Sirius nodded. "Okay, there's this measuring spell that we should probably try first..." He trailed off as he studied the page. "Okay, spell's _Cartus_. Ready?"

"It's not like we're gonna blow up or anything," James laughed. He pulled out his wand and pointed it at the wall. "Cartus."

A soft blue ball of light appeared on the corner of the wall. James moved his wand slightly and the ball mimicked his movement. He dragged the ball to the other end of the wall. It trailed a glowing line behind it, showing the distance that would be measured. When he ended the spell, the glowing line wriggled and formed itself into numbers.

"Thirty-one, eight?" Sirius asked. he looked back at the book. "Oh, okay. The numbers show units of measurement. The number on the right shows inches, the number on the left shows feet. If you want to convert the numbers to anything else, there's a chart in here for meters, miles, and so on. That's pretty cool."

James angled his head as the line faded. "I think it was crooked. The room can't be more than thirty feet wide."

"Try going along the bottom of the wall, where it meets the floor," Sirius suggested.

James tried again. "_Cartus_." He dragged the line along the bottom of the wall. Sirius' idea seemed to work. The line stayed straight, and when it rearranged itself into numbers, their original guess was confirmed. "Thirty, zero," James reported.

Sirius tried a different wall. "Fifty-two, six," he said. "And the window's three feet wide."

"So, how do we put this on parchment...?" James mused.

"I saw a spell in there somewhere," Sirius said, grabbing the book and leafing through it. He paused when he found what he was looking for. "_Cartus Scribitum_." He tapped the parchment with his wand, but nothing happened. He looked at it again. "Oh, we need to write down the dimensions for the room, and that's what we have to tap." He borrowed James' quill again and quickly jotted down the measurements. "_Cartus_ _Scribitum_."

Sirius and James looked at one another. "YES!" They yelled, slapping a high five. The parchment now had a rectangle drawn neatly on it. A number at the bottom said 1:5.

"That means one inch is five feet," Sirius said after consulting the book. If we want to make it larger or smaller, or move it around on the page, we just put our wands on it; corners of rooms for size, walls to move it around. If we add any other rooms, they'll automatically be scaled to the same size."

"Brilliant," James said. "Sirius, I am so glad you decided to come with me to the library!"

Sirius grinned.

* * *

Liz threw her belongings into her trunk, whereas Lily folded her things neatly. Sarah and Victoria were going to stay at Hogwarts over break, so neither of them had to pack. Sarah handed things to Lily and Liz, but Victoria just sat on her bed and talked. Liz didn't mind that the stuck-up girl wasn't helping; there was no way she would have let her touch her stuff. She knew Sarah was genuinely trying to help, though, so Liz didn't mind.

"I knew I shouldn't have waited until the last second to pack," Lily said frantically as she raced around the room.

"Well, throwing stuff in saves a lot of time," Liz said, tossing a bundle of robes into her own trunk to illustrate her point. A couple of Astronomy charts followed. "See? I'm done!" Liz moved to close her trunk.

"Good luck getting that shut," Lily said.

Liz beckoned Sarah over. "Help me shut this, please?" She stopped Sarah when she tried to push the lid down. "No, you have to jump on it." Liz climbed onto the trunk and helped Sarah up. Sarah wobbled on the shaky perch.

"Aren't you worried this'll break anything?" she asked.

"That's what _Reparo_ is for, no?" Liz asked. She began to jump on the lid, but it wasn't until after Sarah joined in that the latch caught. Liz heard a crunching sound from within.

"Have fun over break," Liz said, waving to the others. Lily smiled at her, but was still distracted by her packing.

"Bye," Sarah said. Victoria muttered something, but Liz didn't care. She hauled her trunk down to the common room, where the rest of the Marauders were waiting, their things already packed.

"Took you long enough," James grumbled. "Let's go, I want to get a good compartment."

They dragged their trunks to the entrance hall and loaded them onto the back of a carriage, then climbed in. The coach smelled like mold and straw. Liz pressed her face to the grimy window as she watched Hogwarts fade into the distance.

"Now that we're alone," Peter said suddenly, his grin comically large, "I have something I wanted to tell you guys."

"Spit it out!" Sirius said.

Peter grinned, embarrassed. "Well, you know Melissa Zambrose?"

"Isn't she that girl you spilled the buns on?" Liz asked. Something clicked, and she started laughing. "Oh, Merlin! Peter, did you-"

Peter nodded. "Yeah, I did."

"Did what?" James and Sirius yelled.

"I asked her out," Peter said, obviously enjoying the stunned reactions of the others. "And she said yes."

Remus gave Peter a thumbs up and Liz whooped. James and Sirius looked at each other, then at Peter, stunned. "Whaaaa?" James asked.

"Nice," Sirius said. "Good for you, mate." He shook his head disbelievingly. "I never thought- _Melissa_!" His jaw dropped. "Pete! You know what this means?"

Peter spread his hands.

"It means..." Sirius let the sentence hang. "It means that you're the first one of us to have a girlfriend!"

Liz coughed.

"Okay, a 'significant other'," Sirius conceded.

"Tell us how it happened," James demanded, sitting forward eagerly, probably hoping to pick up some tips on how to ask out Lily.

Peter spent the rest of the carriage ride relaying the story of how he and Melissa had gotten together, everyone except Remus constantly interrupting to ask him questions.

"That is just so sweet," Liz said when he'd finished. The carriage slowed as Hogsmeade Station came into sight, and everyone sighed when they saw the village. The roofs and streets were covered in snow, and wreaths hung on doors and windows. Icicles clung to gables and roofs. The street lamps glowed softly, and the Christmas tree at the end of the main road twinkled, snow weighing down its boughs. The entire village looked otherworldly.

"Wow," Sirius said, which Liz felt summed it up perfectly.

They climbed out of the carriage, and heaved their trunks off the back. The scarlet engine of the Hogwarts Express really stood out in the white world. Steam billowed from the smokestack, making the grey sky look even hazier. Liz felt a bubble of excitement in her chest when she realized that in a few hours, she'd be back with her family.

After they loaded their things onto the train, they began looking for a compartment, though with almost half of the students remaining at Hogwarts, the train was much emptier than usual.

"This looks good," James said, opening a door and plunking himself down on the seat. As the train started to roll out of the station, snow began to fall once more.

The train ride passed without incident. As they drew closer to London, the light snowfall grew heavier, until the wind was howling outside and the snow was whirling through the air.

"This'll be great for a snowball fight on Christmas," James said happily as he rubbed a clear spot on the window to get a better view. "Same teams as before?"

"Bring it!" Liz shook her fist at him.

Finally, the Hogwarts Express pulled into Platform 9 3/4. Liz couldn't see her family, but she did spot Peter's mother near the front of the crowd of parents. The students climbed off the train, calling greetings to their parents and siblings.

Liz heard a shout and saw her brother waving madly to her from her dad's shoulders. The Marauders looked at one another. "So, I guess I'll see you guys on Christmas?" Liz asked.

"Of course," James said. "I'll have mum make her homemade fudge!"

"Is it better than Honeydukes fudge?" Sirius asked.

James tittered. "Don't ask mum that, she'll go berserk."

"No she wouldn't," Sirius laughed. "Two words: Pancake. Fight."

Liz and Remus grinned sheepishly.

"Bye!" Peter said, giving them hugs, then he hurried over to his mother.

"I'd better go, too," Liz sighed. "I'll miss you!"

"Bah, it's only a few days until Christmas," Sirius said dismissively. But he and the others hugged her anyway.

"Elizabeth!" Chris yelled as she walked to her family. He clambered down from his perch and threw his arms around her. Liz tweaked his nose.

"Hey, midget," she teased.

"Not anymore," Chris countered. "I grew an inch while you were gone!"

"Wow," Liz said. "A whole inch. Keep it up, maybe one day, you'll be a giant!"

Chris' eyes widened briefly, but then he scowled. "Nuh- uh! Giants are over twenty feet tall!" Nine year olds weren't as gullible as eight year olds.

"Hey, mum, dad," Liz said, finally greeting her parents. They hugged her as well.

"We missed you," her mother said. "Chris kept insisting that we don't put up the Christmas tree until you got back."

"Did he really?" Liz looked at Chris, who was bouncing in place. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

* * *

"Oh, hey, mum?" James asked when they entered Potter Manor. "Do we have any extra dress robes?"

"What for?" His mother looked at James and Sirius for a moment, then she realized what James meant. "Oh, for the wedding?" James nodded.

"I have some dress robes at home," Sirius said, his nose wrinkling, "But there's no way I'm wearing _those_. They're hideous."

"Hmm." James' mother tapped her chin as she studied Sirius. "I suppose I could always try an enlarging charm on some of James' robes..."

"I don't mind," James said quickly. "Just not the blue one."

"What's wrong with the blue one?" Sirius asked as he and James headed to James' room.

"Those are the ones _I'm_ wearing."

The boys flopped on James' bed, only to realize that they had no idea of what they wanted to do next.

"Quidditch?" James asked hopefully. Sirius made a face.

"Are you joking? It's bloody freezing out there!"

"Fine, fine," James muttered. "But I want to play when the others come over. Liz said her brother wants to be a Beater when he's older. We could play three to a side- You, me, and Remus, and Liz, Peter, and Christopher. Sound good?"

"As long as Moony keeps the Quaffle out of the hoops, sure."

Although Christmas was a week away, it felt like a month to James. He and Sirius spent the days alternately working on the map and their Animagi transformations. They managed to accurately map the Marauders' bedrooms, but they still needed a lot of practice before they could even think about starting on Hogwarts.

They only took a break for the wedding. Since Sirius was going to be the ring bearer, he needed to show up early in order to rehearse with the rest of the wedding party. Andromeda had sent a letter to Sirius explaining that although the dress was going to be traditional of a wizard's wedding, her fiancee's parents were muggles, so they would be having a muggle wedding. Luckily for the young couple, Ted's father was a preacher.

James decided he'd go to the rehearsals and just sit quietly, since it would at least be a little more interesting than sitting around the house with nothing to do. So, at eight in the morning, he pulled on his dress robes, tried in vain to comb his hair, gave it up as a bad job, and joined the others in the kitchen.

"Where's Sirius?" James asked as he loaded his plate with bacon and eggs.

"He's still getting ready," his mother replied. "You look very grown up, James."

"Aww..." Sirius said from the doorway. "Iddn't dat sweeeet?"

"Shut it," James snapped. His mother rapped him on the shoulder. "Sorry," James muttered to Sirius.

Sirius smirked and began serving himself. James was glad he had a spare set of plain black dress robes, since Sirius would otherwise look out of place in the wedding party. Sirius had combed his hair neatly, which was no surprise, but James had a feeling that Sirius had taken more time getting ready than normal.

"Saving a dance for someone?" James asked. Sirius made a face at him. "Well, we'd better be going," he said when they'd finished eating. James' mother walked the boys to the boundary of the wards, then Apparated them away.

James stumbled when they arrived. He didn't think he'd ever be able to get used to the sensation, but if they hadn't Apparated, they would have needed to Floo, which would have left soot on their clothes.

"So, where do we have to go?" James asked, looking around. They had appeared in a neat- looking backyard, surrounded by a high brick wall. A gazebo, almost hidden by the hundreds of flowers growing up it, looked like it had been recently swept out and scrubbed. A stone courtyard, of sorts, spread out in front of the gazebo. Tables had been placed along the outside edges of the stone, and a few rows of chairs had been set up facing the front.

"That's Ted's parents' house," Sirius said. "The wedding will be out here. We'd better get going."

They weaved around the clutter of chairs and tables, managing to make their way to the back door of the house. They knocked.

A young woman with long black hair and kind eyes opened the door. "Sirius!" she cried, opening her arms for a hug. Sirius, all dignity forgotten, jumped at her.

"Andromeda!" He hugged her tightly. "Merlin, I missed you!"

Andromeda ruffled his hair and released him. Sirius muttered something and flattened it back down. "So, you must be James," Andromeda said, holding her hand out. James shook it. "And Mrs. Potter, I presume?"

"That's right." James' mother nodded at Andromeda. "Since I wasn't invited, I probably shouldn't linger. Congratulations on your wedding, though."

"Thank you." Andromeda beamed.

Mrs. Potter looked sternly at the boys. "Behave yourselves," she said, and Disapparated.

Andromeda ushered the boys inside and shut the door. "You're just in time for the rehearsal," she said. "As soon as we're done, I'm going to have to get ready. Ted's mum is probably in the kitchen. She insisted she wanted to make the cake herself." Andromeda laughed. "I'm not sorry, though. She's a brilliant baker. She probably has some food ready for you if you're hungry."

James and Sirius looked at one another. James' stomach growled. "Food would be excellent," he said.

They followed her into the kitchen. Several people were already there: an older man and woman, three young men about andromeda's age, and a young woman.

"Everyone," Andromeda said, "This is my cousin Sirius, and his friend James."

The people called greetings or nodded acknowledgement.

"Guys, these are Mr. and Mrs. Tonks, Ted's parents, Ted himself, his friends Marco Botticelli and Jack Rayfield, and my best friend, Nicole Abbot."

So, this is basically the entire wedding party?" James asked. Sirius elbowed him. James tried to retaliate, but Sirius moved out of the way in time.

"Pretty much," Ted said, shrugging. "We're going to have another wedding, a full-out muggle one, for my other relatives, but 'Dromeda wanted Sirius here."

"The family resemblance is kind of scary," Nicole said, looking from Sirius to Andromeda.

"I'm related, too!" James protested. Everyone except Sirius gave him weird looks. "What? My mum was a Black," James said.

"Nope, don't see it," Marco said.

"Let's get rehearsal out of the way so when the rest of our guests show up, they won't feel like third wheels." Andromeda jerked her head in the direction of the back door.

* * *

Remus looked at himself in the mirror, picking at a stray thread on his sleeve. "I dunno, mum, it's too big for me."

"I'm sorry, Remus, but those are the only dress robes we have that mostly fit you," his mother sighed. She smoothed Remus' collar gently. "You do look handsome, you know."

"I look ridiculous," he mumbled.

"No, you don't. And stop picking at that string, do you want your sleeve to fall off?" Remus dropped his hand to his side.

"Now then, let's go," his mother said. "I don't want you to be late."

As Remus and his mother left Remus' room, they passed by his father in the kitchen. Remus hunched his shoulders as his father looked him over.

"What's he doing, wearing my old dress robes?" Mr. Lupin demanded.

Remus felt a little better when his mum put her hands on his shoulders. "Remus' friend's cousin invited him to her wedding, and these were the only good things we had that would fit," she said sharply. "So, unless you wanted me to spend unnecessary galleons on a new set, I though your old ones would be just as good." She held her chin out defiantly. "It's not like you wear them, anyway."

Mr. Lupin grunted and went back to the newspaper. Remus let out a sigh of relief as he and his mother left the house. He gripped her arm as she twisted away, Apparating them to the Tonks' house.

The backyard was already filled with witches and wizards who were presumably friends of the young couple. Remus spotted James, Liz, and Peter in the second row. He kissed his mother good- bye and hurried over to them, having to hold up the hem of his dress robes so he wouldn't trip over them.

"Hey, Moony," James grinned as Remus sat between him and Liz. "We saved you a seat."

"I noticed." Remus glanced at the others' robes and felt his face heat up. James, Peter, and Liz all had nice robes on, while his looked like they'd been dug out of an old man's attic. Which was true, to a certain extent. The robes he was wearing now belonged to his dad when _he_ was a kid, so not only did they smell like mildew and dust, the things were almost forty years out of style.

"You just made it," Liz said. "Sirius had to go inside about half an hour ago to take photos and get lined up and all that."

"I hope this doesn't take too long," Peter said, leaning around James so he could see everybody. "I'm starving."

"Ugh!" Liz and James exchanged exasperated looks. Liz leaned over and whispered to Remus, "He didn't eat any lunch, so all he's done since he got here is whine about his stomach."

"He'll pipe down once the reception starts," Remus whispered back.

James prodded him in the side and pointed to the front, where an older man dressed in a preacher's suit, and two young men wearing black dress robes had climbed the steps to the gazebo. The small crowd quieted as music from somewhere near the back began to play. Everybody twisted in their seats to watch as Sirius pulled open the back door and stepped out, holding a small box. He grinned when he saw the rest of the Marauders watching him, then made his way down the aisle in the middle of the seats. When he was about halfway up the path, Andromeda and a man about her age stepped out.

Sirius' cousin bore the same familiar features as the rest of the Blacks, but the resemblance to Sirius was much closer than any of the other family members Remus had seen. Maybe it was the eyes, he thought. They held the same mischievous, playful warmth as Sirius'. She was clad in a soft white dress with tiny beads stitched around the neckline, but other than the tiny accent, the rest of the dress was plain. Her black hair was braided and woven with small white flowers.

Maybe it was true, to an extent. The only reason people go to a wedding is to see the bride.

The crowd turned to watch as Andromeda and the man walked to the gazebo, where the other three were waiting. As the bride passed, Remus noticed another woman behind her, holding the train off the ground.

"Who's the guy walking Sirius' cousin down the aisle?" Remus whispered to James.

"That's one of Ted's friends," James whispered back. "Since Andromeda's parents don't approve of this marriage, Marco volunteered to be the one to give her away, whatever that means. The girl behind her is the Maid of Honor, and the taller guy in the gazebo is Jack, the best man. Ted's the other one."

Liz elbowed Remus in the side and he quickly sat up straight. James, realizing that they were being rude, sat up as well.

Remus tried to listen to Mr. Tonks. He really did. But his attention was completely distracted when he felt something brush against his hand and he looked down. Liz hadn't seemed to notice, but her own hand had bumped his when she shifted in her seat.

_Does she want me to grab it?_

"Do you, Theodore Tonks..."

_What if she doesn't want me to grab it and I do anyway?_

"And do you, Andromeda Black..."

Remus breathed a small sigh of relief when Liz brought her hand up to fidget with her sleeves, tugging them into a more comfortable position. Then she crossed her arms, unknowingly ending Remus' moment of uncertainty.

_Now I'm just being stupid._ Remus shook his head.

Up on the gazebo, Sirius opened his box and held the rings out to Mr. Tonks.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may-"

Without waiting for his father to finish, Ted leaned down and kissed Andromeda enthusiastically. She responded instantly, wrapping her arms around his neck to bring him closer to her level.

"...Now kiss the bride," Mr. Tonks finished weakly. The crowd started clapping and cheering, yelling out congratulations and playful taunts.

Ted and Andromeda were totally oblivious to everything but each other.

* * *

At Marco's word, the crowd stood so he could vanish the chairs, leaving an open space for dancing. Liz, looking forward to some food, motioned the others to a table near the back of the stone floor.

"That was really nice," she said, nodding at James when he held a chair out for her.

"I know. I'm just that great," James laughed.

Liz rolled her eyes. "Yes, it was kind of you. I was talking about the wedding, though."

"I know." James craned his neck, looking for Sirius. He must have spotted the last member of the Marauders, because he started waving frantically. A few moments later, Sirius joined them at their table.

"Merlin, these things are so uncomfortable," he complained, tugging at the neck of his robes. He caught sight of Remus' outfit and snorted. "I guess it could have been worse, though."

Liz frowned at Sirius. "Don't be such a prat," she said.

Sirius shrugged. "Just saying."

"Food!" Peter said happily as food appeared on the tables.

"Where did this come from?" Remus asked.

"Oh, Ted's family and Andromeda spent almost all of yesterday and today getting food ready," James replied through an already full mouth.

"Oh."

"Who cares? We can eat!" Sirius said. For once, Liz agreed with Sirius.

She wasn't able to eat as fast as she would have liked, though. At Hogwarts, she really didn't mind if her sleeves happened to drag in the potatoes or dip onto her plate. While she was at school, if any food spilled on her, she could just use magic to clean it up herself. Since they weren't at Hogwarts, however, she would have to ask someone else to clean her good dress robes. Just asking a random stranger to clean her mess was humiliation enough, she thought.

After the food had been eaten, the chatter slowly died down as Ted and Andromeda stood. Liz looked behind her when music started playing, and she smiled when she saw Mrs. Tonks playing a violin, her eyes half opened in a dreamlike trance as she played for her son and daughter-in-law.

The newlyweds walked onto the dance floor. The best man, Jack, catcalled as Ted placed one of his hands on Andromeda's waist. A camera clicked as the couple circled slowly, their eyes only on each other. Liz watched wistfully as they danced, looking like there was nothing they'd rather be doing more.

When the first dance was over, Ted's mother hit a button on a radio and slid a tape cassette into the slot. She then joined her husband on the dance floor.

Sirius stood and held his hand out to Liz. "Dance with me?"

Liz glanced over at Remus, who seemed to be focusing on the dancers. "Well, er, I guess..."

Sirius pulled her out onto the floor. "Look, it's really not that hard once you get the hang of it," he said. "Just hold my hands." Liz gripped his hands, her face red. She was certain everyone was going to be staring at her.

Sirius continued his lesson. "Then, just step- two- three, two- two- three, three, two- three..." Liz copied him as best as she could, stepping on his toes more than the ground. When the song ended, she let go quickly.

"When did you learn how to waltz?" she demanded.

Sirius grimaced. "It's kind of required in our family. As soon as we learn to run, we're also learning to dance. It's considered to be a part of reputation, at pureblood gatherings. Old family, old traditions."

"Well, it came in handy, didn't it?" Liz asked, heading back to the table. James and Peter were watching them, looking a little left out.

"What's wrong?" Sirius asked as he and Liz sat down.

"Well, there aren't any girls our age here, are there?" James said. "And there's no way I'm dancing with Peter."

"I'll dance with you," Liz offered. "Assuming you know what you're doing?"

James snorted. "Didn't Sirius already give you the history lesson?"

"Ah. Point."

"Well, I'll go see if I can steal a dance from my cousin," Sirius said, getting up and disappearing into the throng.

Dancing with James was decidedly less awkward, Liz decided. It was less like dancing and more like goofing around. They held hands and spun in a wild circle, making many of the other dancers leap out of the way to avoid getting hit. They jumped up and down, using their momentum to spin even faster. Finally, dizzy and out of breath, they collapsed on the floor, giggling hysterically.

"Aw, crap," Liz panted when they started to recover. "Mum's going to have a fit when she sees this." She indicated her dress robes, which were now stained with sweat and dirt.

"So?" James asked. His hair was sticking up even more than usual. "C'mon, let's get a drink. I'm parched."

"Since when do you know what that means?" Liz asked.

"Since I started hanging out with you and Remus."

At the drinks table, they hung on the edge of the dance floor and watched the other wedding goers.

"If I ever get married," James said thoughtfully, "I want it to be just like this."

Liz glanced at him. "Would the bride have red hair?" she asked.

"You tell me," he retorted. Liz swatted him.

After a few more songs, they spotted Sirius dancing with Andromeda, who was at least at least half a foot taller than him. They looked very graceful; but then again, they had grown up learning stuff like this.

"Look at Peter," James said, poking Liz and pointing. She followed his gaze and saw Peter approach the bridesmaid and bow. Liz couldn't hear what he said from across the room, but Peter had offered his arm and led the woman to dance.

"Maybe I should give him a dance," Liz said. "It's not fair that all the other girls have at least ten years and a good ten inches on him."

"Are you joking?" James asked. "It's funnier watching him dance with them!"

"I suppose." Liz watched the dancers for a while, but found her gaze drifting to Remus. He was still sitting at their table, tugging at a stray thread on his sleeve and looking extremely out of place.

"Well?" James asked.

Liz looked at him. "Well, what?" she demanded.

"_Well_, Moony's obviously too much of a sissy to ask you to dance, so why don't you?"

"Huh?"

"Do I need to spell it out for you?" James said, frustrated. "You. Girl. Go to table. Talk to boy. Ask boy to dance."

"I heard you." Liz scowled, then bit her lip. "I dunno, James. What if he says no?"

"What if he does?" James gave her a little push. "Go on. I'll get Pete and Sirius, see if we can get a group thing going."

Liz walked hesitantly over to Remus. When he didn't look at her when she stopped by the table, she cleared her throat nervously. He looked up.

"Ah, I was, er, wondering if..." Liz trailed off, glancing behind her for James, but he had gone.

"What?" Remus asked. He didn't sound curious, or nervous, or angry- in fact, it sounded like there was no emotion in his voice at all.

Liz swallowed. "Do you... want to dance?"

Remus looked behind him, as though he thought she might be asking someone else. Finally, he looked back at her and pointed to his chest questioningly. Liz nodded.

"...Sure?" Remus got up slowly, holding up his robes so he didn't trip over them. Liz winced. The robes were much too big for him.

"We don't have to move much," she said. "Let's just get away from the tables so we don't hit something."

They faced each other, unsure of what to do. Finally, Remus held his hands out.

It was nothing like the crazy, fun dancing she'd done with James, or the awkward attempts at elegance with Sirius. Liz and Remus swayed slightly, staying in place so Remus didn't trip. Liz could feel her face burning the entire time, and when the song ended, she and Remus quickly let go. Liz almost wished he would dance with her again. It may have been just one dance, but when Liz returned to the drinks table , dodging around James, Sirius, and Peter, who were making a clumsy attempt at a kick line, she still couldn't get rid of the swelling sensation in her chest.

She thought about it, trying to understand what it was as she poured herself some pumpkin juice. When she glanced over at Remus again, she almost choked on her drink when she realized that it was _him_. Her best friend. She had a crush on her best friend.

Liz was silent for the rest of the afternoon, answering the others when they talked to her, but she was still trying to comprehend her discovery. Looking back, she really ought to have realized sooner. She felt happier, almost, when Remus would smile at her, more than when any of the others grinned at her.

* * *

It's a weird sensation, when you discover that you've had a crush on your best friend for a long time, but never before realized what it was. You feel like you should have known all along, because it was obvious in retrospect. You feel terrified, because you think that revealing your feelings will strain your friendship. And, of course, you feel weird, because for the longest time, you thought they were just an amazing person to be around- and then you realized that they were.

* * *

**A/N: Whew! That was a long chapter! It's taken me... what, four days to write this? Jeezum. (O.O)**

**Maaaybe I was stretching the wedding part. (Okay, I was. Shoot me.) But I felt that they needed to have some downtime in the middle of a war. Next chapter won't be so lighthearted. BWAHAHAHAHAHA!**

**But yeah, I know it might seem sudden, Liz just realizing she liked Remus like that, but let me tell you a story. (Anecdote objectors, look away now.)**

**When I was in seventh grade, I met a guy. He was smart, funny, kind, and cute. We first started talking due to a shared interest in Legos. I discovered that he'd read Harry Potter and enjoyed it (though not to the same degree of obsession as me) and when he found out that I liked Lord of the Rings, we were soon spending lunchtimes at the same table, yammering away about our hobbies and obsessions.**

**Now, at the time, I had a boyfriend already, so I never really thought about this boy in a romantic way, until my boyfriend and I broke up. A couple of months after the end of our relationship, this boy and I had to do a lab in science class together. It was something about radio waves and we had to use Slinkies to model the way waves travelled through the air. So, the boy and I got our Slinkies completely tangled and ended up having to spend the rest of class detangling the darn things. When we finally got them apart, he said, "We make a pretty good team."**

**It was lucky he turned to look at his worksheet after that, because I felt like the floor dropped out from under me. I felt like- I'll be honest- a total, complete, idiot. I'd really liked him from about a week after I met him, and I just hadn't realized it until then.**

**So, yeah, the boy? I tried to get him to notice me for pretty much all of the rest of the year and the entire eighth grade, without any success. Finally, I just up and asked him in ninth grade if he wanted to go out with me. We've been official for a year and three months now.**

**So, the corny romantic stuff? Don't write it off as total purple prose. **

**Except for the crap authors write about how fantastic and wonderful and stunning a first kiss is. It's special, yeah, but honestly, most of what's in literature is a bunch of... excuse the phrase... romanticizing.**

**Speaking of kisses, to guest reviewer _a nonny mouse:_**

**No, I haven't forgotten Sirius' birthday wish. It's just going to be... delayed... heheh. It won't be for a few more stories, though. :/ I know when it'll happen though. Don't worry. :D**

**Also, I iz confuzzled. Part One has 58 faves, 42 followers. Part Two has 51 faves, 70 followers. Huh? Me no understandy...**

**Chapter sixteen _is_ being drafted now. No idea when it's gonna be up, but it won't be as long as this one. Meh.**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**

******/\ /\ This is Bunny. Copy and paste Bunny**  
**(='.'=) into your profile to help him gain**  
**(")_(") WORLD DOMINATION.**


	15. Silent Night

**A/N: Hey, y'all, I'm sorry I haven't uploaded since December. School got back in at the start of January and I've just been trying to keep my algebra and chemistry grades up... without much success. If I go offline for a while, I've either been grounded or just haven't felt like writing. *GASP* It's been rough.**

**In other academic news, though, I've been flooded with letters and emails from various colleges that looked at my PSAT scores (I'm gonna go ahead and brag about my 99% in critical reading and 98% in writing) and mom seems pretty happy. Shame none of them have been from University of Washington...**

**As for the friend who's reading HP, she's still working on OotP, and I have another friend started on SS. So *YAY face!***

**Oh, and I looked over the last few chapters of this, and I realized that in the chapter with the Quidditch tryouts, I said David Wood was a Beater, but in the first match, he was a Chaser. So I'm going to nip this in the bud now; he's a Chaser. It was totally a mistake on my part. The players are: Chasers- David Wood,Corey Spinnett, and James Potter; Beaters: Ashton Leigh and Michael Boot; Keeper- Warren Warner; Seeker- Naomi Vuong. **

**And to clear up any more confusion, I call Filch's cat Mrs. NorrisII because cats don't live nearly as long as humans, but I think Filch likes the name. His first cat was Mrs. Norris, and this is his second, Mrs. NorrisII. He had a third (Mrs. NorrisIII, what else?) but by the time Harry got to Hogwarts, he was tired of adding the numbers onto the name, so his cat is just plain Mrs. Norris.**

**Anyhow, I'll stop yapping about stuff none of you really care about and get on with the chapter.**

**Disclaimer: Pfft, I wish. *Bows to J.K. Rowling***

* * *

James woke with a start when something soft hit him in the face.

"Wake up, James, it's Christmas!" James glared up at Sirius, who was holding his pillow, ready to smack James with it again if he din't get up.

"Can't you think of a less terrifying way to wake me up?" James demanded as he threw off the covers and reached for his glasses.

"Yeah, but this is more fun," Sirius said. He whacked James one last time for good measure, then ran for it. James chased after him.

The boys skidded to a stop by the Christmas tree in the main room, eyes wide when they saw the mound of presents. James' jaw dropped when he spotted a long parcel that was just the right size for a broomstick box. He grabbed it and turned it over, looking for a tag.

"That's for you," Sirius said, pointing out the label that had been stuck on the side.

"Oh yes oh yes oh yes!" James bounced in place for a moment, then took off for his parents' room. He threw the door open to find them already awake.

"We thought we heard you boys yelling," his mother said. "I suppose this means we have to get up now?"

"Yes," said James, tugging on his dad's arm.

Once they were back by the tree, James held up the long box. "I want to open mine first!" Without waiting for an okay, he ripped off the paper and yelled excitedly.

Inside the box was the Cleansweep Five, the brand-new model that had been released just a few weeks earlier. James ran a reverent hand over the gleaming ash handle, marveling at the beauty of it.

"Thanks," he said, hugging his parents tightly.

"Happy Christmas, James," his mother said. She picked up another present and handed it to Sirius. "This one's for you." She smiled gently as Sirius went red and stammered his thanks.

"Just open it," James said impatiently. "You're starting to sound like Remus!"

Sirius stuck his tongue out and tore the paper away. "Whoa..."

"What is it?" asked James, scooting along the floor to look in the box.

Sirius pulled out his present and gazed at it. It was a collection of Sirius' favorite comic, _The Adventures of Martin Miggs, the Mad Muggle,_ with the entire series until last year's gathered into one book.

"This is brilliant," Sirius said. "Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Potter."

"You're very welcome," Mrs. Potter said.

James was already distracted by the unopened presents. After a glance at his parents for their permission, the boys dived in. It was a good haul this year, James thought; a new copy of _Quidditch Through the Ages_ from Peter, to replace his old one that was falling apart, a tiny compass that he could attach to his broom from Remus, a book of Wiz Libs from Liz, and a mirror from Sirius.

"Er, thanks?" James said, holding the mirror at arm's length and examining it.

Sirius glanced over his shoulder to make sure James' parents weren't paying attention, then leaned forward conspiratorially. "That's not any old mirror," he whispered, "It's a two- way mirror. I have the other one. You just say my name, and if I'm near mine, we'll be able to talk to each other."

"Are you serious?"

Sirius just looked at him. "Who else would I be?"

"You know what I meant," James said, half exasperated, half amused.

"That's an unusual name," Sirius said thoughtfully.

"Wha-?" James rolled his eyes. "Prat."

Sirius grinned. "If what you meant was, 'can these really do that', then yes, they can."

"You do know you could have just said that."

"Why would I?" Sirius held up his new Gobstones set. "Anyway, are you up for a game?"

James shrugged. "Why not?"

* * *

Sirius was ahead by nearly thirty points when the boys became hungry. After they'd washed their faces off, they hurried down to the kitchen to get something to eat.

"Right," James said, looking around, "I know I made a fool of myself last time I tried to make something, but I have to learn sometime..."

Sirius grinned at him. "You mean, _we_ have to learn sometime," he corrected, "You're not the only one who grew up with house-elves." He opened the pantry and pulled out a bunch of bananas. "Luckily, I've found a way around that problem." He broke off two bananas and offered one to James.

"Here's to the mighty banana," James declared, holding his fruit up in a toast. "Breakfast, lunch, and dinner of people who can't cook."

"The mighty banana!" Sirius and James quickly peeled and devoured the entire bunch.

"Mmph wph oobr?" James mumbled around the food in his mouth. Sirius gave him a bewildered look. James somehow managed to swallow everything in one gulp, then said, "Do you know when the others should start showing up?"

Sirius snorted. "How do you expect me to know? It's not my house."

"Just wondering aloud." James stretched as he stood up. "Hey, do you want to have a snowball fight? I know we're not allowed to go outside, but I bet we could play on the terraces off our rooms."

"Fine, but you asked for it!" Sirius snatched the last banana from the table and ran back to his room, slamming his door and locking it a split second before James crashed into it.

"Open up, you prat! That last one was mine!"

Sirius laughed as he took a bite. "Wow! This must be the most delicious thing I've ever tasted," he said loudly.

"Fine! I didn't want it anyway," James' voice was muffled by the door, but Sirius could hear him laughing.

"You know, I've only eaten half of it," Sirius said.

"Just get dressed."

Sirius dropped the peel in the rubbish bin and headed over to his closet. Knowing he'd work up a sweat, he only pulled his winter cloak and boots over his pyjamas before going outside.

James had already stacked up a mound of snowballs on his terrace and was piling snow against the railing to create a barrier. Sirius immediately began doing the same.

When he was satisfied with the fort, he began stockpiling ammunition. As he started packing snow together, a snowball exploded against the back of his head. Sirius dived behind his fort and launched his snowball at James. It missed by a hair as James ducked behind his own fort.

"Is that the best you can do?" James taunted. Sirius didn't answer for a moment; he was too busy scraping together more snow. he heard James grunt as another snowball was hurled his way. Sirius felt a dull thump when it splattered against his fort.

"At least I'm not throwing at a wall," Sirius yelled. He stood and tossed his snowball so that it sailed in a perfect arc over James' barricade.

"Gah!" James yelled. Sirius dropped to his stomach as more missiles went airborne. One of them landed on his foot and Sirius quickly pulled it under cover.

After several minutes of furious fighting, Sirius, who was drenched with sweat, called, "Truce?"

"Sure," James panted. The two boys sat against the house, away from their forts so they could see each other. Too worn out to talk, they made faces for several minutes until they got their breath back.

"Hey, I bet you can't hit that dead tree," James said, pointing to the woods. Not wanting to turn down the challenge, Sirius packed another snowball and lobbed it into the trees. It fell short by several feet.

"You try it then," he said. James' try wasn't much better.

Sirius was winding up to throw again when he suddenly stopped. He could have sworn he'd seen a flicker of movement in the woods.

"What's the matter?" James asked, noticing his hesitation.

"I thought I saw something..." Sirius muttered. He and James peered into the trees, but neither of them saw anything other than branches and snow.

"Maybe it was a deer?" James suggested.

Sirius shook his head slowly. "I dunno, it looked black to me-" he froze, then looked slowly at James. Their eyes locked for a second, then they bolted for the doors. Sirius wrenched his open and almost fell over his feet in his haste to get inside. He slammed the door behind him and locked it, his heart pounding. He still remembered that day when Liz had seen a man in the woods behind James' house. If he was back-

Sirius shivered and tried to put it out of his mind- after all, it had only been a slight movement- but he was still uneasy.

He got changed into some dry clothes and headed to James' room. He'd barely raised his fist to knock when James pulled the door open. His eyes were wide behind his glasses.

"You don't think that was a Death Eater, do you?" James asked. His voice was shaking.

Sirius shrugged, not trusting himself to speak. His mouth was dry.

They stood uncomfortably for several minutes.

"Should we tell your mum?" Sirius finally said.

James thought about it, then shook his head. "I mean, we don't know for sure that was a Death Eater. You didn't really get a good look at it, did you?" Sirius shook his head. "It could have been a squirrel, or a bear, or a bird. It might have just been a branch moving. There's no sense in worrying my parents over nothing, and besides, they might tell the others not to come for dinner."

Sirius nodded. There wasn't any reason to make a fuss. besides, he wasn't totally sure he _had_ seen anything. His mind was probably just playing tricks.

* * *

"Liz?" Chris poked his head into his sister's room. "Are you ready yet?"

"Give me a minute." Liz held up one shirt, then another, trying to decide between blue and green. She scrunched up her nose as she studied her reflection, unhappy with both items of clothing.

After repeating the process several times, Chris threw his hands in the air. "Just pick one!"

Liz gave him the stink-eye and dropped the green shirt on the floor. "get out, I need to get dressed."

"We were supposed to leave five minutes ago!" Chris protested.

"I'm not going in my pajamas, now scram."

Once Chris had shut the door, Liz got changed and eyed her reflection again. Maybe her brains were addled from all the sugar she'd had that morning, because she couldn't remember ever wasting her time in front of a mirror.

Liz wanted to cry. None of her clothes fit properly; her pants were too short and her shirts too tight. Her parents said she'd grown at least three inches since the start of the holidays, but they had yet to go shopping for new things.

Liz grabbed her jacket and zipped it all the way up, fidgeting because even it was now too small. She started to tug it straight, then stopped. What did it matter what she looked like? She'd certainly never given a damn before.

There was a knock on the door and Liz jumped. "Elizabeth?" Her mother's voice came floating into her room. "Can I come in?"

"Sure...?" Liz sat heavily on her trunk as her mum opened the door.

"What's taking you so long? I thought you were excited to go to James' house." Her mother sat down next to her.

"I am! But- I can't go like this, I look ridiculous." Liz sighed and bit her lip. She realized that she was trembling.

Her mother tapped her chin thoughtfully. "This sudden interest in appearances wouldn't have anything to do with someone, would it?"

"What? No, mum, why would you think I'd get nervous about Remus?"

Liz's mother raised and eyebrow. "I never said anything about Remus."

Liz's face burned. After stuttering incoherently for a moment, she managed, "I, er, might..."

"Might what?"

"Might maybe kinda sorta have a crush?"Her words were barely audible, but from the way her mother's eyes widened, she could tell she'd heard. Liz turned away and buried her face in her hands.

Her mother nudged her and she looked up, still totally mortified. She caught sight of her reflection and burst into tears, flinging her arms around her mum's neck, not wanting to cry, but unable to stop. "Wha- what's hap-opening to m-me?"

Liz's mother stroked her hair. "Sweetie, you're growing up. It happens to everyone, you know."

"But I don't want to grow up," Liz whispered.

To Liz's surprise, her mother laughed. "You know, just because you're getting taller and seem to be under the attack of hormones, that doesn't mean you're maturing mentally." She muttered something that sounded like, "Because Merlin knows that would make my life too easy."

"Why me, though?" Liz hiccoughed, shaken from her meltdown. She wiped her face on her sleeve. "None of the guys have to deal with it."

Her mother smiled. "Just give it a few years. Girls tend to hit puberty before boys.  
"Now, how about you go wash your face, and when you're cleaned up, we'll go to James' house?"

Liz gave her a small smile before rushing out the door, down the hall, and into the bathroom. After she'd cleaned away the last of the snot, she ran back to her room and yanked open her sock drawer. She dug into it and extracted the carved box that housed her chess set. She was determined to get back at James for squirting Gob-gunk in her eyes when they were on the train.

On her way out the door, Liz paused in front of the mirror again. She almost pulled her jacket straight. Almost.

Instead, she reached for the scissors on the dresser.

The last thing she grabbed before running out to the car was her hat. She jammed it over her head, making sure it was pulled down as far as it would go.

* * *

"This is great, James." Remus looked around the main room, with it's beautiful tree, festive garlands, and gold painted pinecones that turned it into a magical place. Remus laughed to himself; James' parent's were a witch and wizard. He was just getting caught up in the festivities.

Wizard crackers were stacked on the tables, and Liz's brother, Chris, and Sirius were amusing themselves by pulling them apart, never letting more than a few seconds pass between each bang. Liz and Peter were sitting on the floor playing chess, their glasses of eggnog never going dry as Lulee kept them refilled. The parents were all sitting at one table, enjoying an after-dinner glass of wine and bursting into raucous laughter. Remus and James were sitting a little ways apart from the others, building an Exploding Snap card house.

"It is, isn't it?" James agreed. He let out a contented sigh as he placed another card. The house trembled for a second before collapsing. The moment it fell, all the cards exploded, scattering scraps of paper everywhere.

"That one was your fault," Remus said pointedly.

"Whatever." James motioned to Lulee. The elf noticed the destroyed deck and snapped her fingers to restore them for the tenth time that night. "Thanks."

"No problem, Master James," Lulee said, balancing a tray with glasses of eggnog. "Lulee is always being happy to help!" She scurried off to refill Peter's and Liz's drinks.

"You're lucky you get to spend every Christmas like this," Remus said.

"Not every Christmas," James disagreed, "I mean, last year, we were all at Hogwarts, well, all of us except you. The year before that, it was just me and mum, since dad had to work."

"You know what I meant." Remus leaned against the wall, watching as a burst of confetti covered Chris and Sirius. "I mean, every Christmas that I can remember, it's always been just me and mum."

James grimaced. "Because your dad...?"

Remus shrugged, wishing he hadn't brought the topic up. James seemed to sense this and changed the topic.

"So, what classes are you planning on taking next year?"

Remus raised an eyebrow. "Since when have you been so interested in school?"

"Since when does a hippogriff dance the can-can?"

Remus was taken aback. "What are you-?"

James bopped Remus on the nose. "HONK!" he yelled, then darted away, yelling, "You can't catch me!" over his shoulder.

Remus jumped up and chased after him, which was the cue for the others to abandon what they were doing and join in.

James was halfway up the stairs when Remus, Sirius, Peter, Liz, and Chris reached the bottom. The lights were off on the second floor and James disappeared into the shadows. The group paused at the top, listening for footsteps or breathing, but they heard nothing. They huddled in a circle, their faces hidden in the gloom.

"Okay, here's the plan," Remus whispered. The others leaned in so they could hear. "We won't turn the lights on, because we don't want James to hear us coming. Use your ears- he might be able to breathe quietly, but if you aren't moving, there will probably be some kind of noise."

"I'll check the bedrooms," Sirius volunteered.

"I'll go with him," Peter said.

"Chris and I can check the formal sitting room and the drawing room," Liz said. "Remus, you want to come with us, or Peter and Sirius?"

"I could go by myself," Remus said. Sirius shook his head.

"It's really dark up here, if you fall and get hurt and nobody hears you, you might be stuck in the dark for hours. You're going to have to go with someone."

"Fine, Liz and Chris." The groups split up, tiptoeing down the hall and to their destinations- or rather, they tried to. Liz and Remus, who were used to sneaking around Hogwarts, had perfected the art of moving stealthily, but Chris seemed to tread on every loose floorboard in existence.

Remus was considering backtracking to join Peter and Sirius when Liz tugged on his arm and he stopped. Chris must have stopped too, since Remus could no longer hear creaking wood.

"Do you hear something?" Liz whispered. Remus listened, thinking she might have heard James, but what he heard was something more blood chilling- from outside, he could hear the blasts and crackles of curses being fired.

"_Lumos_," Remus said, lighting his wand. Liz drew and lit hers as well.

"What are you doing?" Chris asked. "I thought-"

"Shhh." Liz put a finger to her lips. "Don't you hear it?"

Chris cocked his head to one side. Remus could tell when he heard, because the boy's face drained of color. He clung to his sister's arm.

"We need to find James and-" Remus didn't get to finish his sentence. Though they were in a windowless room, they'd left the door open, giving them a clear view out the window in the hall as a massive fireball was blasted straight at them. The children threw themselves to the sides as the window shattered and flames rolled in, lighting the room with a hellish orange light.

"Liz!" Remus yelled, coughing on the dust and smoke. "Chris!"

"We're okay," Liz yelled. Remus couldn't see them through the smoke in the room.

"What are we going to do?" he heard Chris ask.

"Stay close to me." But Liz, for all the bravery she was trying to show for her brother, sounded scared.

Remus swallowed, trying to think of what to do next. They were on the second floor in a windowless room, with their only exit blocked by flames. Either they had to blast a hole in the wall or find a way to put out the fire. But through the fire was a gaping hole in the side of the house that would expose them to the Death Eaters below- for who else could it be?

"Remus!" Remus jumped when James' voice spoke right behind him. He whirled to find James covered in soot and dust. "I was in here the whole time, I was under the Cloak-"

"You have the cloak?" Remus choked as the smoke began to get thicker.

"Yeah, what-?"

"Liz! Chris!" Remus yelled, "Lie down on the floor, you'll breathe less smoke that way! Try to find a big piece of furniture that'll lay flat on the floor!"

"O- okay," he heard Chris cough.

Remus and James lay on the floor as well. "What do we need furniture for?" James asked.

"If we levitate it over the flames in the doorway and drop it quickly enough, it should hopefully smother the fire before it starts burning. There's a massive hole just outside, but if we wore the Cloak, the Death Eaters won't be able to see us."

A look of understanding dawned on James' face and he nodded. "There's a grandfather clock on that side of the room," he said, pointing in Liz and Chris' direction.

They crawled on their stomachs, hearts in their mouths as the flames crept nearer to them. Finally, they found Liz and Chris on the far side of the room, frantically alternating between searching for furniture and fanning the smoke away from their faces.

"There's nothing over on this side," Liz gasped. Despite the sweltering heat, she still had her hat pulled low over her head.

"There should be a grandfather clock over here," James coughed, crawling toward the back wall. His hand hit the baseboard almost immediately. James crawled about a foot to the right. "Yes! Found it!"

"Levitate it on three," Remus said, pressing his hand to his face in a futile effort to block the smoke. "One, two, three-"

Struggling to keep the ancient clock aloft, Remus, James, and Liz had to drag themselves along the floor with one hand. Chris crawled ahead of them, making sure they stayed on track.

"A little to the left," he called. Drenched with sweat, the other three crawled after him. The grey-black smoke was now shot through with orange and yellow, so Remus knew they were getting close- or the fire had spread even more. Both, probably.

"There it is," Liz said. "Ready?'

It took them a great deal of energy, but they managed to maneuver the clock into the doorway. Exhausted, they lat it drop on the fire with a nasty crunching noise, but Remus' plan had worked. The fire in the doorway was out, but it wouldn't stay that way for long. Already, flames were beginning to lick at the edges of the dry, ancient wood.

"Everybody under here!" James ordered. Not bothering to worry about breathing the smoke anymore, they stood, threw the cloak over themselves, and jumped through the door, and not a moment too soon. The instant they were clear, the grandfather clock burst into flames.

If they'd been hoping for fresh air once they were in the hall, they were disappointed. Although a lot of the smoke was billowing out through the hole in the wall, there was still a dark cloud that filled the hall. Remus was certain that if they didn't die in the conflagration, the toxic smoke was sure to finish them off. He could barely breathe, and he felt light- headed. He stumbled and fell to the carpet. The others fell next to him.

"Have to... keep... going..." James wheezed. They kept crawling, but they barely had the strength to keep their heads up. It was too much...

There was a dull thump as Chris' head hit the floor. His sister a second behind him.

"...no..." Remus muttered thickly, grabbing Liz's arm and giving it a weak tug. James tried to pull Chris along, but soon, he too fell unconscious.

Remus' head was spinning. He was determined not to die, not tonight, but he couldn't keep going... it was so much easier to just close his eyes...

* * *

**A/N: ...Aaaand I think I'll leave it at that! BWAHAHAHA!**

**Don't worry, next chapter won't take nearly as long to get out as this one. I was having a Siriusly hard time getting this chapter started, but once I did, I just couldn't stop. I have a TON of stuff to write for the next few chapters, but there might be a bit of a lull between part two and part three, because I have all of two planned out, but nothing planned for three (and of course, I have plots ready for four, five, six, seven, and eight... *facepalm*)**

**So, if anyone has any suggestions for the story arc for Part Three, please let me know! There will be cookies! And n****argles!**

**Enough of my creativity leeching, I need to go get started on chapter seventeen, which I'm sure none of you are complaining about. I hope. :D**

**And to anonymous reviewer Poppy123, I'd like to say I'm glad you're enjoying the stories, and hope you continue to do so. I am well aware of the rules of Quidditch, and nobody knows what Alice Longbottom's maiden name was (Prewett is just a fanfic theory, nothing's been proven that she's related to molly as far as I know) but I know you were just trying to help, so thank you.**

**And thanks to everyone who reviews! I love hearing your feedback- I'm just a sucker like that. And don't forget, I need plot ideas for part three!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	16. Once Defied

**A/N: hey, guys! So, yeah, chapter's finished now (duh!) and since I have nothing else to do besides plot WORLD DOMINATION with Bunny, I found the urge to stop procrastinating and get typing. I would have had this up earlier, but internet was down at our house until like ten-ish today. Meh.**

**Oh, and to all my fellow Bronies out there (DON'T JUDGE ME!) I think I've finally turned my brother into a Brony as well, though he won't cop to it. Shame. If he would, he'd instantly become twenty percent cooler. **

**Oh, and to those of you who watch it- happy Super Bowl Sunday and all that... Uh, what teams are playing again? But hey! Who's excited for the new World War Z movie?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, although I probably know more obscure lines from the books than JKR just because of my creepy obsession with the series... but that would be presumptuous, wouldn't it?**

* * *

Sirius and Peter were in James' bedroom when a bolt of blue light burst through the window, shattering it into thousands of deadly shards.

"Get down!" Sirius dived at Peter and they rolled under the bed as razor-sharp glass smashed against the floor.

"Ow," Peter said in a dazed voice. Sirius felt something warm oozing through his shirt. Peter pulled his hand out from between them and held it up. There was a nasty gash across his palm that was bleeding heavily.

"you need to put pressure on that," Sirius said, pulling his wand free of his pocket and severing a strip of cloth from the hem of his shirt. "We can't have you bleeding to death." He wrapped it tightly around Peter's hand.

"Thanks," Peter said, tugging the makeshift bandage tighter. Both boys flinched when another bolt of light shot into the room.

"We have to get out of here," Sirius said, pulling Peter out from under the bed and crawling to the door.

Unfortunately, the hallway wasn't much safer. As soon as they'd escaped James' bedroom, the large window halfway down the hall exploded as a gigantic fireball ripped through it like it was paper. Almost immediately, the entire hallway was filled with a choking black smoke.

"No!" Sirius stumbled towards the fire when he heard shouts coming down the hall.

Peter saved him. Seeing Sirius about to run through the flames, he seized the back of Sirius' robes. "You can't go in there!" Peter said urgently. "You'll get burned! We need to get help!"

Sirius inhaled to yell for his friends, but he breathed in an unhealthy amount of smoke and began coughing. His eyes watering, he nodded to Peter and they ran for the stairs.

At the top, they froze. The front door had been blasted open and three hooded figures emerged from the night. After a slight pause, they headed deeper into the house.

"You take the one in the back, I'll get the other two," Sirius muttered. he prepared to take out the third one anyway, in case Peter missed.

He did, and didn't. "_Petrificus Totalus!_" Peter whispered, aiming for the Death Eaters. His spell didn't hit the one in the back, but it did catch the middle man in the shoulder. He keeled over, stiff as a board.

Sirius fired off two more Body-Bind Curses before the man's companions could react. The intruders landed in a jumbled heap in the front hall.

"Let's go!" The boys raced down the stairs, jumping over the men and racing into the main dining room. Almost immediately, Sirius was thrown off his feet as a Hurling Hex crashed into his shoulder.

"Sirius!" Mrs. Potter's terrified face appeared over him and she pulled him to his feet. "Are you alright?"

"Little bruised, but yeah-" Sirius was cut off as a barrage of curses flew through the room from the lounge. Mrs. Auberey lunged forward, deflecting spells off an invisible shield. Mr. Auberey was right behind her, holding an iron poker like a club.

"Peter!" Mrs. Pettigrew hugged her son tightly, then all but threw him behind her. She may have looked sweet and harmless when Sirius had first seen her, but he could tell from just one glance at her determined face that she would die before anything happened to Peter.

"Where's James?" Mrs. Potter asked frantically.

"I dunno." Sirius swallowed hard. "he was upstairs, I think, and there was a fire-"

There was a crash in the lounge and everyone jumped, ready to fight, but then Mr. Potter's voice yelled, "Don't shoot!" he and Mrs. Lupin blew through the door, firing hexes behind them as they ran.

"There are more behind us!" Mrs. Lupin yelled. "We-" A jet of red light caught her squarely in the back and she crumpled.

"Get to the kitchen, now!" Mrs. Potter yelled. Mr. Auberey stuck his poker in his belt and grabbed Mrs. Lupin under the arms, dragging her limp form into the kitchen so the others could fight.

When they were all safely through the door, Mr. Potter locked it and began setting up wards around the room, motioning for the others to help. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Auberey were distracted, though.

"Sirius, where's James?"

"Elizabeth and Christopher?"

Mr. Auberey, who had been doing a head count, swore violently. Startled, everyone turned to him.

"We're missing four kids."

"Remus!" Sirius yelled. "He was with the others, but I have no idea where they are-" he stopped abruptly and yanked at his belt, fingers slipping as he yanked the mirror free. "James!" The mirror's surface quivered for a second, then a hazy image appeared. It looked like the ceiling.

"Have to... keep... going..." Sirius watched the mirror in horror as James' weak voice came through. The murky image shivered, then swung violently as James presumably collapsed. Sirius was thankful, though; James was lying on the floor in the upstairs hallway right next to a pedestal that supported one of the nicer vases in the Potters' house- and it was only twenty yards from the stairs.

"They're just up the stairs!" Sirius said, showing Mrs. Potter the image. She immediately threw the door open and raced out, Mrs. Auberey right behind her.

"We need to get to safety," Mr. Potter said. "We could get out with the Floo network."

"We can go to our house," Mr. Auberey said. "It's far enough away from here that we'll be safe, but close enough so we can get back quickly if magical transport becomes blocked."

Mr. Potter nodded and hurried to one of the cabinets, pulling out a jar of Floo Powder. He handed it to Sirius. "You and Peter should get out first," he said.

Sirius didn't want to leave his friends behind, but he knew that if he stayed, he'd probably get killed. He took a pinch of Floo Powder and stepped into the fireplace. "Auberey House," he said, and then he was whisked away, spinning wildly as he shot past other fireplaces, before falling onto the carpet in Liz's living room, leaving a black soot stain where he landed.

* * *

Liz's mind was hazy. Her lungs hurt, almost as badly as when she'd breathed those mushroom spores. She knew she had to keep going, but her body refused to move. She lay on the floor, each breath more painful than the last, as she felt the heat intensify. She didn't even have the strength to move as a searing pain crept up her right leg.

As Liz took another rasping breath, she felt cool, clean air rush down her windpipe. She began to cough, convulsing on the floor as her body expelled the toxins in her system. The burning stopped as her vision cleared, and she was able to make out her mother and Mrs. Potter, looking very odd with Bubble-Head Charms encasing their heads.

Her mother pulled her to her feet. Liz swayed, still very dizzy, but stumbled after the others, slowed by the burn on her leg. Chris tripped and she grabbed him, holding on with a determination not to lose him. James gripped her shoulder and Remus took James' hand, staying together as they made their way to the stairs.

"Hurry!" Mrs. Potter yelled as another explosion shook dust from the ceiling.

They were almost to the stairs when they stopped, cut off by a group of five or six Death Eaters. Almost casually, the hooded men flicked their wands. Liz snatched at hers as it was ripped out of her hands, sailing through the air with the others'.

The mothers stepped front of the children, shielding them with their own bodies.

"Mrs. Potter," one of the Death Eaters hissed, advancing on them.

"What do you want?" Mrs. Potter asked, keeping her voice steady.

"Your husband has been causing problems for us," another Death Eater said. "We wanted to ask him to stop."

"A fine way of asking," Mrs. Potter said coldly. "And I suppose you thought that blasting our house to pieces would make us agree?"

"No," the leader rasped, "But taking your son hostage might."

Mrs. Potter tried to hold James behind her, but James ducked around her and launched himself at the leader. Caught off guard by the boy's reckless defiance, the Death Eater's curse sailing harmlessly over the others' heads.

Liz, Remus, and Chris leapt at the others, punching and kicking and screeching like wildcats. The mothers joined the fray, and before long, Mrs. Auberey had wrested her wand back from the Death Eater she'd tackled.

"_Expelliarmus!_" she yelled, and nine wands were sent airborne. Liz caught hers and one of the Death Eaters', throwing it to her brother.

"What spell?" Chris yelled, kicking his Death Eater in the shin. Liz answered by putting the Full Body-Bind on her opponent.

Chris opted for a more direct approach: when the Death Eater lunged for his wand, Chris jabbed it through the eyehole of his mask. The Death Eater howled and fell back, clutching his face.

"That works, too," Liz said as James Petrified the last Death Eater.

"Let's go, everyone's waiting!" Mrs. Potter waved the group to the kitchen. They wrenched the door open and collapsed inside, but if they were expecting refuge, they were disappointed. The others weren't there.

"Where did they go?" Liz asked, her mouth going dry as a spell exploded against the windows.

James suddenly grabbed a mirror that was hanging on his belt.

"Not the time for vanity!" Remus yelled.

James ignored him. "Sirius," he said, staring intently at the mirror.

"Are you out of your mind?" Liz demanded. "We're kind of under att-" Her jaw dropped when she saw Sirius' face gazing out at them.

"James! We're at Liz's house, we took the Floo-"

"We're on our way," James said, running over to the fireplace. "Chris-"

Chris took a pinch of Floo Powder and disappeared in a whirl of green flames. Remus went next, then Liz.

"Auberey House," she called, and shut her eyes.

She ended up crashing into Remus, who had just picked himself up when she plowed into him. A second later, James fell on top of them.

"Ow," Liz gasped as an elbow dug into her ribs.

"Sorry," James said, rolling off of her as Mrs. Auberey and Mrs. Potter came spinning out of the fire.

Liz staggered over to Chris. "Are you alright?" she asked, holding his face tightly between her hands. He nodded, but there were tears leaving streaks on his grimy face. Liz hugged him, trembling. Their parents held them close, and Liz hoped they'd never let go.

Liz could hear the others' exclamations of relief as they reunited with their families. Looking over her dad's shoulder, Liz saw Sirius standing awkwardly in the middle of the room until Mr. Potter pulled him into his family's embrace.

After a long time, Liz's mother let her and her brother go, hurrying unsteadily to the kitchen. Liz still held on to her father, listening to the sound of water gushing out of the tap in the kitchen as several glasses were filled. Liz accepted her cup and drank greedily, the cool liquid soothing her throat.

"Nobody's hurt, are they?" Ms. Caitlin asked. She looked rather out of sorts, though the water seemed to rejuvenate her.

"My hand got cut," Peter said.

Liz was aware of a painful burn on her leg, but she motioned for Ms. Caitlin to take care of the others first. Chris, James, and Remus all had several burns; Chris had a nasty cut over one eye, Remus had an immensely swollen cheek from his fight with the Death Eater, and James had managed to sprain his ankle. Amazingly, though, nobody was seriously hurt.

Liz pulled her hat off and dumped the rest of her water on it, then set it on the shiny, blistered skin. The fire had burned nearly half of her shin, and she hissed when the rough wool touched the burned flesh. Despite the initial pain, though, the cool dampness felt good.

Everyone was silent as Ms. Caitlin healed their injuries. Liz noticed her mother's eyes rake over her new haircut, but she decided not to say anything. Liz was relieved for a split second before she felt guilty. She was getting out of trouble because James' house had been destroyed. Liz clenched her teeth. Why couldn't she have seen it would happen?

"Thanks," Liz whispered when Ms. Caitlin got around to her. She sighed with relief as the hot blisters became cool and faded away, though her skin looked a bit like stretched plastic.

"I'm sorry, I just don't have the energy to heal it completely," Ms. Caitlin apologized. "I could try again later..." She looked drained, like Remus after a full moon.

"It's fine," Liz said, looking at the others. The cut over Chris' eye had sealed up, though it hadn't quite stopped oozing. Peter kept clenching and unclenching his hand, where a new scar cut across his palm.

"I'll get more water," Liz's dad said, taking Ms. Caitlin's mug and heading back to the kitchen.

"So, what happened when you went to get the kids?" Mrs. Pettigrew asked, looking at Mrs. Potter.

Liz shrunk into her mother's side as mrs. Potter recounted the fire and the encounter with the Death Eaters. Mr. Potter frowned when his wife mentioned the reason for the attack, but he swelled with pride when she described James' bravery after they'd been disarmed.

Sirius and Peter chimed in about their own fight, then Liz looked up at her mum. Not needing any prompting, she went on to tell how the adults had noticed the children race upstairs, and a few minutes later, Death Eaters had come blasting their way through the big window in the main room. The parents had scattered, caught by surprise, trying to regroup and find the missing kids when Sirius and Peter had come running into the dining room a minute before Mr. Potter and Ms. Caitlin, who had been chased by yet more Death Eaters.

Liz didn't realize how still the room had gone until Remus sneezed, making everyone jump.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

Liz rubbed her face and yawned, feeling gritty soot under her fingers. A thought struck her. Frowning, she looked at the Potters. "What are you going to do now?" she asked.

"I need to contact the aurors," Mr. Potter said, thinking, "And we'll need to find a place to stay for a few days until the manor can be rebuilt."

Liz barely heard what the adults were saying next. Exhausted from the excitement that night, she began to nod off against her mother's shoulder.

* * *

Mrs. Auberey looked at the children, who were all fast asleep on the floor in the middle of the living room. "The children can stay here for the night, but we don't have enough room for anyone else."

"I'd rather Peter come home with me," Mrs. Pettigrew said. "Thank you for offering us shelter, and thank you for the party," she added to the Potters. She gently shook Peter awake. Once he was up, Mrs. Auberey handed him the Floo Powder, and he and his mother left.

"We'll be leaving too, then," Mrs. Lupin said. "Come on, Remus."

Her son woke with a start. "What?" he looked around the room. "Are we leaving?" Mrs. Lupin nodded.

Remus looked at those who were still awake. "Thank you," he said simply, then he and Mrs. Lupin were gone as well.

"Feel free to stay in the guest room," Mr. Auberey said to the Potters.

"Thank you," Mrs. Potter said gratefully. She looked at James, Sirius, Liz, and Chris, who were still snoring on the carpet. "Is it alright if we just leave them there for the night? I don't want to wake them up..."

"I'll get blankets," Mr. Auberey said, heading for the stairs.

* * *

**A/N: Next chapter should be tying up some loose ends from this chapter, then they'll be going back to Hogwarts. Only a few more chapters until the end of War Upon Us and then I'll be getting started on part three! Thanks to theblonde2243 and GirlSwagg21 for the plot suggestions! You've really helped! *starts muttering to self* Now, what would the title be...?**

**Anyway, I might be really lazy, I might be really motivated, but next chapter will be out before the end of the month. Hopefully. Maybe. Okay, it will. I'm just not sure when.**

**Oh, and watch out for FoilMaster. She got an account just so she can stalk my updates, MOM.**

**I'm gonna go stick my head in an ostrich hole and never come out now.**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	17. Never Cry Wolf

**A/N: Oookay, everypony! I know it's been far far far too long, but I've been able to type my chapters up at school, and when I FINALLY finished transcribing the chapter, mom let me on the computer for like five minutes. Chapter twenty is finished now, so all that I need to do is type... that one... also...**

**gjsiheabflk%(Vo&%&cfuDBHUO&%Rqwit4bhis**

**Sorry, that was me slamming my head against the keyboard.**

**Anyway, there will be either two or three more chapters (probably three, I'll have to see how it works out, though) before the end of this fanfic, then it'll be on to part three: Black Moon. Excited?**

**TOO BAD! You have to wait until I finish this one! BWAHAHA-**

**Meh. Also, sorry for the odd formatting; the doc manager didn't seem to like me copying and pasting a Word document...**

**Disclaimer: I would love to say that I own it, but only the plots for my fanfic and my OCs are mine. Everything else belongs to the amazing JKR.**

* * *

The next few days after the attack passed in a blur to James. They spent the night at Liz's house, but the next evening found them in the home of one of James' father's colleagues, who had no children but a larger house (and consequently more space) than the Aubereys.

Thanks to magic, the Potters were soon able to move back into the restored manor, which was now to be under guard 24/7. Surprisingly enough, most of the manor was undamaged, save for the burned second floor and the smashed windows.

Lulee, to James' relief, was alive and well, though more than a little shaken. Apparently, she had hidden in a cabinet in the sitting room when the curses began to fly. A discovery the day after they moved back to the manor further served to lift the children's spirits; James' brooms, Sirius' _Martin Miggs_ collection, and Liz's chess set were all undamaged.

Within two weeks, James couldn't tell that there had ever been an attack on his home, though the smell of smoke still lingered.

Before he knew it, he, Sirius, and the rest of the Marauders were aboard the Hogwarts Express, the bad memories almost starting to fade as the train sped northward.

Almost.

After exchanging excited greetings and hugs, Peter, Remus, and Liz demanded to know everything that hadn't been said in their letters. Sirius dove into the story, but James sat quietly, feeling like he'd been hollowed out from the inside.

"Well, I'm glad everything's been fixed up," Remus said.

"Can you imagine what this term would have been like if your new broom got burned?" asked Peter, his eyes wide. "You wouldn't have been able to play Quidditch!"

"Mmm," James replied uninterestedly. He wasn't sure why he felt so dispirited; after all, it wasn't like the damage was irreparable.

Liz gave him an odd look. "Is everything alright?" she asked.

"Of course!" James forced a smile. "I'm fine, everything's fine, why wouldn't it be?"

The others gave him skeptical glances, but decided to let it go. James breathed a sigh of relief, not realizing until then that he'd been holding his breath. What was going on with him?

He shoved the matter to the back of his mind as he tried to listen to Liz recounting the events of her family's annual get-together and how she was severely tempted to hex her cousin Sybill's mouth shut.

"There're only so many times you can listen to her freaking out about death omens in the cake frosting before you have to either leave or shut her up," Liz sighed. "She just won't believe that she's not a Seer. Thank Merlin that she'll be gone after next year."

The only difference between this train ride and the one at the beginning of the year was the lack of students. James was rather grateful that there weren't many kids on the platform at Hogsmeade- the attack on the manor had made the front page of the _Daily Prophet_, and he didn't want to deal with people asking awkward questions.

Hogwarts was unnaturally quiet to James' ears, but that was probably because he was used to getting off the train to find the entrance hall packed with students who had just got off the train, pushing and shoving to get to dinner.

Sirius nudged James and pointed to the top of the stairs, where Professor McGonagall was waiting. They left their trunks with the ones already piled in the entrance hall and clambered up the steps.

"Welcome back," said Professor McGonagall, smiling tightly. "I'm very glad to see you're all safe and sound."

"Not as glad as me," Sirius said with a wide grin.

James nodded dully as the others chimed in their agreement.

"But don't think that means I'll forgive any pranks you'll pull," McGonagall said sternly, looking sharply at James. He nodded again. "Anyway, I suppose you want to go up to the common room. The password is 'snowfall'."

"Thanks, Professor," Remus said as he and the others turned to go. She held up a hand, stopping them in their tracks.

"I meant it," she said, "If there's any more chaos this term, I'll know exactly who was behind it!"

She dropped her hand and they skirted around her, running up the stairs until they could no longer feel her eyes on their retreating backs.

"Whew," Liz said when they stopped on the fourth floor, "I think McGonagall's still suspicious about what happened on Halloween."

"Who cares?" Sirius asked. "We got off scot-free!"

James' mouth twitched, then a second later, he was doubled over laughing. When the others joined in, the attack over break finally began to fade into the past. He knew he wouldn't be able to ever forget it, but for now, he was safe at Hogwarts with his friends, and his parents were living with much tighter security, so maybe they would be safe as well. Besides, he reasoned, the Death Eaters that they had faced seemed pretty pathetic. If all the others were like that, the war would be over soon.

He failed to take into account that the Death Eaters had been under orders to capture, not kill.

* * *

Remus woke the next day when the sun was just starting to peek over the horizon. He smiled at the thought of only half the school year to go, but the smile quickly faded when he remembered: Professor Lovegood had covered many dark- and some neither dark nor real- creatures, from kappas to hinkypunks, in the first term. As long as you knew how to deal with them, they weren't dangerous. However, now that the second term had begun, they'd be starting on the more dangerous creatures, like dementors, vampires…and werewolves.

He wasn't sure what would be worse; being in class during that particular lesson, or being absent due to the full moon and risk having the kids put two and two together.

He lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling and turning it over in his mind as the light streaming through the window grew brighter. At last, he heard footsteps outside the door, and a second later, it was thrown open as Liz strode in.

"Hey, guys, up and at 'em!" she yelled.

Remus sat up with a sigh, but the other three boys shoved their pillows over their heads.

"Don't wanna get up," Peter grumbled.

"Fine," Liz said, turning to go, "I guess you don't care that _James has Quidditch_ later today." When nobody moved, she added, "And he had to keep his attendance good if he wants to stay on the team."

There was a pause, then James muttered, "Classes don't start until eight, Eb. Go away."

"It's seven-thirty."

James jumped out of bed, yanked Peter's pillow off his head, and flung it at Sirius. "You heard her, get up!"

Liz grinned at Remus before leaving the boys to get dressed.

Ten minutes later, they were scarfing down their breakfast, and five minutes after that, they were racing up the stairs to Defence Against the Dark Arts. Remus bit his lip as they entered the classroom to find pictures of many dark creatures leering at them from the walls. Near the window was one that sent a chill down his spine: A man, his face twisted in pain that was exaggerated by the stark light of the full moon, writhed as fur erupted over his rapidly growing body.

Sirius noticed Remus' anxiety and gave him a small nudge. Remus tried to smile, but it felt more like a grimace.

The Marauders claimed seats at the back of the room, hoping that it would keep their classmates from glancing absently at the back of Remus' head and suddenly connecting the dots. As the remainder of the class filed in, Remus forced himself to keep from sliding down into his seat. It would only draw unwanted attention.

The bell rang and the babble of voices died to a steady murmuring as Professor Lovegood emerged from her office, a holly wreath perched on her head.

"Hello, everyone," she said, beaming at them, "I hope you all had a good holiday?"

The Marauders glanced at one another, remembering only all too well the events of Christmas night.

"I had a lovely Christmas, myself,' the professor continued. "My little nephew and I spent much of it trying to find nargles."

"Did you find any?" Ravenclaw Ashley Nickels asked from the front row.

"Alas, no, but we did find some amazing evidence that those shy creatures exist," Professor Lovegood said happily. "Now then-"She clapped her hands for attention. "As I'm sure you all have noticed, the posters on the walls show an array of dark creatures that are much more dangerous than those we studied last term. Many of the spells used to deal with such creatures, like the Patronus Charm for warding off dementors and lethifolds, are extremely advanced, even for fully trained wizards. We will be discussing such spells, and will practice some for several days, but since they are so difficult, I will only be grading for effort, not results."

And if we manage to perform one of the spells…?" Lily asked.

"Then I will give you fifty points to whatever your House is," replied Professor Lovegood. "So,' she continued, addressing the whole class, "We'll spend today going over the basic traits of these new creatures, then we'll go more in-depth later." She turned and wrote on the blackboard _Dementors, Inferi, Lethifolds, Pogrebin, Quintapeds, Vampires, _and_ Werewolves._ After underlining each, she turned back to the class. "Who can tell me something about dementors?"

Lily's hand shot into the air, along with Ryan Bennet's and Ashley Nickels'. Remus halfheartedly began to raise his own hand, wanting to show Professor Lovegood that he knew the answer, but he didn't want to draw any attention. He quickly dropped his hand before it was more than a few inches off the desk.

"What's wrong, Moony?" whispered James, "You know this stuff so well, you should be teaching class instead of this lunatic." Liz and Peter gave James hurt looks. "Fine, that nice lunatic," James amended, grinning abashedly.

"…don't want to…" Remus mumbled.

"But-"

Out of the corner of his eye, Remus saw Sirius shift in his seat. A moment later, there was a dull _thunk_ and James hissed in pain.

Grateful for the distraction, Remus focused on the board, trying to ignore James' and Sirius' muted threats and insults.

"Dementors are the guards of Azkaban," Ryan Bennet said. "They feed off of happiness and can suck your soul out of your mouth."

"And what's that called?" Professor Lovegood asked, turning to write it down. Remus hastily pulled out his quill, ink bottle, and parchment, and began scribbling the notes.

"The dementor's kiss," Lily promptly answered.

Remus made sure to write down everything in the event that something might be mentioned that he didn't already know, but James was right about his already knowing the material.

He soon discovered that some of his classmates' beliefs about dark creatures were even crazier than professor Lovegood's lectures on wrackspurts.

Nick Marsh thought that dementors grew larger as they consumed more souls. Victoria said that a person bitten by an Inferius would become one as well. Liz slipped up and confused a pogrebin with a nogtail.

Hardly anybody had heard of the rare, but extremely aggressive, quintaped, though everyone knew what a vampire was. Remus had to suppress a snort when Peter said that a wooden stake to the heart would kill a vampire.

"Well, that is true, peter,' Professor Lovegood said, smiling amusedly, "But I think a wooden stake to the heart would kill most creatures, don't you?"

Peter turned scarlet as the class laughed, but they fell silent when Professor Lovegood put her fingers to her mouth and whistled shrilly.

"Let's not have any of that," she said sternly, looking scarily like Professor McGonagall. "I'm sure Peter wasn't the only one who thought it to be true."

Many of the students looked a little guilty, but they soon got over it when Professor Lovegood pointed to the last word on the board.

"Who can tell me something about werewolves?"

The class had gotten over its hesitation to answer by now, and several people raised their hands. Remus shot a sideways look at his friends, breathing a sigh of relief when he saw all of them had actually sat on their hands.

Nick Marsh was called on. "Werewolves transform when the moon is full."

As the professor turned to write it on the board, Ashley Nickels spoke up. "If a person't bitten by a transformed werewolf, they become a werewolf too."

Remus sat as still as possible as the class continued to list the myths and facts they'd heard. To his surprise, he almost laughed out loud once or twice at some of the ideas his classmates produced.

Sarah was convinced werewolves could be burned by silver; one of the Ravenclaws, Cassandra West, said they had a great sense of smell in human form. As Professor Lovegood began to explain how those notions had ingrained themselves in folklore, Remus felt something chilly on his arm and he turned to find James pressing a sickle against his skin. Remus raised an eyebrow and James grinned, then held his quill under Remus' nose.

"Where have I gone today?" James whispered.

Remus swatted the quill onto the desk, praying nobody had noticed.

"Professor?" Ryan Bennet's hand was in the air. "If werewolves aren't dangerous in their human form, then why has the _Daily Prophet_ kept reporting on the Greyback Pack?"

A whisper ran through the classroom at the name. Fenrir Greyback, the most notorious werewolf in Britain since the eighteenth century Typhus Caladonan, had a nasty reputation for targeting children. It was rumored that Greyback attacked people even without the full moon, but it had never been confirmed. What _had_ been confirmed, though, was that Greyback had gathered an underground force of werewolves, some like him who enjoyed killing, some who wanted revenge on the society that shunned them, and some who simply had nowhere else to go. Remus wondered for a moment if whoever had bitten him was one of the latter, and felt a twinge of sympathy for them, having to live as an outcast while he got to attend school with friends who accepted him.

"Ahh, yes, I was wondering if someone would bring that up," said Professor Lovegood. "Greyback and his followers are an unusual case. They don't try to keep to themselves, but take their bitterness out on innocent people."

"Then they _are _dangerous," Ryan Bennet said.

The students broke into excited chatter, and Remus couldn't help but sink a few inches lower in his sink.

"The Ministry of Magic keeps tabs on werewolves because they're dangerous?" James stood up, glaring defiantly at the entire class. Remus froze, but he tried to send mental messages to James, begging him to sit down. "Did it ever occur to you, even once, that it's werewolves like Greyback and his cronies who've given all the others a bad name? So many good witches and wizards have been rejected because of something that wasn't their fault, something that they had no control over. How many kids do you think aren't allowed to come to Hogwarts because of it?" James shook his head in disgust. "That's like not letting Sarah and Ashley into the school because they have blonde hair. Maybe we shouldn't let Ryan come because he has freckles. Evans can't attend because she has anger issues." Lily glared at James, but he wasn't done yet. "While we're at it, let's kick me out because I wear glasses. Or even better- get rid of Dumbledore because he's getting old!"

"None of that's dangerous, though," Nick objected.

"Have you seen Evans when she's mad? But that's not the point. Most of the other stuff isn't dangerous, and neither are werewolves for the majority of the time. Besides, they can lock themselves up during the full moon; I've heard several times that it's possible. And think about it this way-" James pulled out his wand and held it up for the class to see. "With these, even if we can't learn how do use them properly, we're more dangerous than werewolves. Werewolves can't command you to do whatever they want, and they can't instantly kill from a distance. They aren't dangerous at all really, until you get close to them. But us? I'd say we're even more dangerous than Greyback, because of all the advantages magic gives us. So why don't we just all snap our wands in half right now and end the danger?"

"Well said, James," Professor Lovegood said, drawing the attention back to her. Remus dropped his head to his desk and covered it with his hands. He was shaking badly. James patted him awkwardly on the shoulder.

"I'm really sorry about drawing attention," he whispered, "But I couldn't let them carry on like that."

"Thank you," Remus whispered. "For not giving me away and for speaking up."

"We would have all said something," Sirius said quietly, leaning around James to look at Remus. "But we didn't want to make people suspicious."

"Wait- you guys planned that?" Remus asked, his mouth dropping open in surprise.

"Well, we figured we'd have to cover… you know, _them_ sometime this term, so Sirius and I wrote that last night so I wouldn't look like an idiot when I spoke."

Remus had no idea what to say.

"That's alright, there's no need to thank me," James said pompously, adjusting his glasses with an air of superiority. Liz and Sirius elbowed him from either side. "Ow!"

James' yelp was luckily drowned out by the bell and the subsequent burst of chatter from the students. The Marauders packed up their things hurriedly, not wanting to be late for potions, which was all the way down in the dungeons.

* * *

James stared down at the bubbling cauldron, absently stirring it counterclockwise until Lily grabbed his arm.

"Okay, that's enough," she said firmly. She bent over her textbook, running her finger down the page until she found whatever it was she was looking for. "Now you need to stir it for a minute in the other direction, then the potion should turn green."

James nodded and changed direction, though he hadn't really heard what she'd said.

Lily flipped over her timer and turned to James. "Look, potter, I normally give a rat's arse about what's going on with you, but you don't seem like yourself. We've been here for almost two hours and you haven't asked me out once- not that I'm complaining- but that's what has me worried."

"Oh, so you want me to ask you out?" James asked after a pause. "Fine. Evans, will you go out with me?"

Lily didn't snap at him like she normally would have; rather, she gave him an anxious look that quickly changed to alarm when she realized the timer had run out of sand. "Stop stirring!" she cried. James froze, fearing that the potion would explode. After a tense minute, they allowed themselves to relax.

"We need the caterpillar heads now," Lily finally said. She passed a knife and a handful of dead bugs to James, then took one for herself. They chopped in silence for a moment until Lily said, "Is this because of what happened in class?"

James dropped his knife with a clatter. "What? Nah, I think you're imagining things."

Lily wasn't buying it. "You seemed pretty upset when you were giving your speech." She seemed to think for a moment, then she said, "You know, Sev has this crazy idea that your friend Lupin is-"

"Whatever you've heard from Snivellus is nothing more than a load of hippogriff dung,'" James sneered. "Next thing you know, he'll be saying vampires sparkle in the sun!"

"Good, you're back to normal," Lily said, giving him the stink-eye."

"This sudden interest in my wellbeing wouldn't have anything to do with affection that you don't want to admit?"

"The only affectionate thought I have of you is the thought of introducing my fist to your face,' Lily said cooly.

"I knew you couldn't keep your hands off me."

"Keep talking and these caterpillars won't be the only things missing their heads."

"Okay, okay, keep you hair on." James shook his head and turned back to decapitating bugs.

_That_ _one was Bennet_, he thought sourly, bringing the knife down on a caterpillar.

_That_ _one was Marsh._

_That_ _one was Nickles_.

Snivellus.

Dranseau.

"Potter, stop chopping up the table," Lily said irritably, snatching the heads away from him and throwing them into the cauldron. It hissed and bubbled for a few seconds, and when it died down, the potion was a pale green colour.

"Excellent work, you two," Professor Slughorn said, bending down for a better look. He had been waddling about the classroom, inspecting everyone's work and occasionally interrupting himself with stories about old students.

"Than you, Professor,' Lily said, acting as though James hadn't done anything to help. He opened his mouth to protest, but Slughorn spoke first.

"So, I was thinking that I would host a welcome back party next week, for members of the 'Slug Club'," he chuckled, feigning embarrassment, though it was easy to see that he was pleased with the name. "It'll be on the nineteenth, that's a Friday, so you won't need to worry about not getting enough sleep for class the next day."

"I would love to,' said Lily.

"Splendid! Dinner will be from six-thirty to however late we want. What say you, Mr. Potter?"

"I-" James began, when a hand gripped the neck of his robes.

"Could we talk to James for a second?" Liz asked, giving James a hard look. Sirius stood next to her, giving Slughorn a cheeky grin.

"Of course, go right ahead." Professor Slughorn clapped James on the shoulder and strode off to talk to Snivellus.

Liz dragged James away from Lily until they were out of earshot. "What-" she hissed, "are you thinking?"

"Slughorn wants me to come to another dinner party," James said slowly. "What's so bad about that?"

"Did you even hear what day it was?" Sirius asked. James gave him a blank look. Sirius looked around, then whispered, "The party's on the nineteenth."

"So?"

"So," Liz said, as though talking to a toddler, "The eighteenth is the full moon."

James mentally smacked himself. "Merlin, I'm thick!"

"Yeah, you are," Liz said.

"Thanks for reminding me," James said ruefully. He hurried over to Professor Slughorn, who was back behind his desk.

"Ah, James, my boy! So, will you be able to come to the party?"

"Sorry, Professor," said James, "But my friends and I have other plans."

Slughorn's face fell, but James had already headed back to his cauldron.

"Bad news, Evans," James said brightly as he approached Lily, "You won't have me to talk to for the entire party."

"Oh, darn,' Lily sighed theatrically, "That's just too bad, isn't it?'

"It is," James agreed. He ladled some of their potion into a flask and brought it up to Professor Slughorn's desk. The bell rang a second after he set the flask next to the others, and he darted out the door with the rest of the students, leaving Lily to clean the cauldron by herself.

* * *

That night in the dorm, Sirius kept attempting the Patronus Charm, determined that once, just once, he would beat James at something.

_He was going to be placed in Slytherin, he just knew it-_

_ "GRYFFINDOR!"_

"_Expecto Patronum_!" Sirius hissed. A fine silver vapor streamed from his wand, but it refused to take shape. "Dammit, wand, work with me!"

_"What happened? Is Remus-"_

_ "Remus can stay!" Liz announced._

"_Expecto Patronum_!"

Though there was definitely more mist this time, Sirius still couldn't cast a corporeal Patronus. He'd done it once before, so why couldn't he… do it…again…?

Sirius focused on the memory he'd thought of when he cast the spell the first time.

_It was his first birthday cake in as long as he could remember. The candles were enchanted; anything he wished for, within reason, would come true. He looked at his friends' expectant faces as they sang Happy Birthday, touched that they had dropped their plans for the day to give him a birthday._

"_Expecto Patronum_!" Sirius whispered.

He fell backwards with a yell of delight and astonishment as a massive, shaggy beast erupted into existence.

"What the-?" James yelled, sitting bolt upright. His yell startled the other boys awake. Sirius couldn't answer James, terrified that if he did, he would lose his concentration.

A huge silvery dog stood in the middle of the dorm, a soft white glow emanating from it.

"What is that?" Peter cried.

"Sirius, you did it!" Remus gasped. "A corporeal Patronus- Merlin, that's brilliant!"

Sirius stared at the Patronus. He tilted his head and the dog mimicked the action, one of its floppy ears falling over its head. It was enormous, easily the size of a small bear, but despite its size, it wasn't ferocious-looking; in fact, as the boys watched, it gave a doggy grin, its tongue lolling out of its mouth. Suddenly, it flickered and vanished.

"I did it!" Sirius jumped up, dancing like a madman. "I'm gonna be a dog!"

"We saw," James said, grinning widely. "Congratulations, Sirius- I'll bet you'll be the first one to make the transformation!"

"I don't know about that,' Sirius said, but he was unable to disguise the glee in his voice.

Of course, James, Remus, and Peter all had to try as well, but nothing exciting happened for them. James and Remus both produced a large cloud of mist, but all Peter's wand did was spit out a thin stream before he just gave up.

"Still, it's better than you've done before," Remus said, patting Peter's shoulder. "That's the first time you've made anything happen, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is!" Peter perked up, his enthusiasm renewed. "I can do it better than Liz!"

Sirius recalled the jubilation he'd felt when he'd produced the corporeal Patronus and tried it again. It took him two attempts, but the silver dog was soon loping across the room, pausing to sniff each boy in turn.

"Wicked," Sirius breathed.

* * *

"What?" Liz asked incredulously, uncertain if the boys were messing with her. A bit of her egg fell off her fork and landed on her plate with a soft _splat_. "Are you serious?'

"Uh, yeah," Sirius said, rolling his eyes. Liz pursed her lips.

"Are you kidding me?' she reiterated.

"Would I ever do that?' Sirius said, pouting.

"Yes," everyone else answered.

"He's not kidding, though," said Peter, "He really pulled it off, it was absolutely amazing! He's gonna turn into a dog!"

"Very nice," Liz said. So that meant the dream she had before school started was real. Her stomach clenched when she realized it more than likely meant she'd someday end up being chased down a tunnel by a bloodthirsty werewolf, but it wasn't like there was anything she could do about it now.

"But what would a nickname be for a dog?" Sirius complained.

"Poopbreath?" James suggested.

"Excuse me?"

"Well, you know how dogs eat poop sometimes?" Remus said, grimacing. "I got a poopy-flavored Bertie Botts' bean once- it wasn't pleasant. Maybe if you're a dog, though…"

"I don't think so," Sirius said.

"Actually, Poopbreath might work, considering all the crap that comes spewing out of your mouth," muttered Liz. Sirius elbowed her.

"If I'm Poopbreath, then you're Lizardbreath."

"Okay, we'll think of something else!"

After breakfast, the Marauders made their way outside and headed down to the greenhouses. The air was cold and damp, and a fine mist seemed to permeate their clothes. Despite the fact that none of them got wet, they all felt soaked to the bone when they finally made it to the greenhouse door.

Liz noticed a girl with bouncy caramel curls near the back of the greenhouse and grinned when Peter turned scarlet.

"Oh, go on, Pete," James said, giving peter a small shove. Peter stumbled, then regained his balance and hurried over to his girlfriend. The rest of the Marauders claimed a tray nearby so they could listen in.

"Did you have a good Christmas, Peter?" Melissa asked.

"Yeah, except for the Death Eater attack when we were at James' house," Peter said offhandly. Melissa's eyes widened.

"I read about the attack on the Potters' home in the newspaper, but I never thought you were there- are you okay?'

Peter straightened up and puffed his chest out a little. Liz stifled a giggle. "I fought three Death Eaters," Peter said.

Melissa gave him a skeptical look.

"That prat," Sirius muttered, "I took out two of them and he knows it!"

As though he could sense Sirius' indignance, Peter relented. "Okay, I only took out one. Sirius got the other two."

"One's still a really big accomplishment," Melissa said. "I'm proud of you."

Liz thought peter would burst if he swelled anymore.

"Oh, er, I made a present for you," Peter said suddenly. He pulled something out of his pocket. Liz, Remus, James, and Sirius all leaned over so they could see.

Melissa held up the gift. It was a necklace strung with beads made out of tiny seashells, with a larger shell pendant. Her face lit up. "Oh, that's so sweet!" A thought seemed to strike her and she suddenly looked crestfallen.

"Is something wrong?" Peter asked nervously.

"No- well, yes- I didn't get you anything!"

Peter hurried to reassure her. "No, it's fine, you didn't have to-"

Without warning, Melissa leaned forward and kissed Peter on the cheek. Sirius wolf-whistled and the couple jumped apart, their faces bright red.

"When did you guys get here?" Peter stammered.

"We've been here just as long as you have," James replied. Peter's eyes widened almost comically.

"What's going on?" Two of Melissa's Hufflepuff friends who Liz recognized as Lana Adrian and Rachel Hart had just arrived.

"Peter and Melissa wee snogging!" Sirius said quickly.

"Were not!" they cried. Lana and Rachel looked at the others for confirmation.

"They weren't,' Liz said, taking pity on her friend, though she couldn't resist adding, "Melissa _did_ give Peter a kiss on the cheek!"

Lana and Rachel giggled and gave Melissa teasing pokes. "Make sure to name your kids after us," Rachel said. If it was possible, Peter's and Melissa's faces grew even redder. "I'm kidding," Rachel laughed.

Professor Sprout chose that moment to enter, and Peter made to join the Marauders at their tray.

"Oh, no, mister, you're staying with us," Lana said, grabbing Peter's arm and dragging him back to Melissa. Peter gave his friends a pleading look.

"Have fun, you two," Sirius said, giving a jaunty wave.

Professor Sprout must have decided to give an easy lesson for the first class after break, so the morning was spent learning how to properly grow and care for honking daffodils. Remus was the only one at their tray who bothered working on the lesson, as Liz, James, and Sirius were distracted by James' discovery; poking the daffodils in specific places made them honk at a higher or lower pitch, and the flowers with longer stems produced deeper honks.

"Check this out!" James began prodding the daffodils, playing a halting, but fairly accurate, recreation of the Gryffindor fight song.

"Very good, Mr. Potter," Professor Sprout said, "But maybe you could focus more on replanting your daffodils instead of causing a ruckus with them?"

James prodded a daffodil twice in quick succession to finish the song, then he hurriedly dug up the bulb and moved it to a larger pot.

As soon as Professor Sprout had moved away, James started playing again.

* * *

"Fly high, Gryffindors! Fly high, Gryffindors! Always try, never do, we will put the smack on you! Fighting with the lion's pride, with daring bravery rule the skies! Fly high, Gryffindors! Fly high, Gryffindors! Fly high, Gryffindors!" James chanted the fight song as he marched down to the Quidditch pitch for the first practice of the new year. He couldn't wait to try out his new Cleansweep Five… or to see the astonished looks on his teammates' faces as he blew by them. Naomi Vuong used to have the fastest broom on the team, a Nimbus 1000, but now, James would be leaving her in the dust.

"I've got an awesome broom, awesome broom for awesome me, bum- bum- ba- dum-" James broke into an odd prancing strut as he sang his improvised ditty.

This was going to be a perfect Quidditch season.

"Awesome broom, awesome broom, I've got an awesome broom, awesome broom for awesome me…"

* * *

**A/N: Oh, James, you arrogant toerag. We all love you. Except when you're being a prat. Then we all want to strangle you. Amirite?**

**Like I said in my above A/N, I have chapter twenty finished and am working on twenty-one, so next chapter will be up as soon as I'm able to finish typing it up. I only have thirty minutes during my lunch period to work, and I'm a notoriously slow typer. Sigh. But at least I'm able to post!**

**Keep those reviews coming! I do make it a point to respond to them all, though I might not be able to respond to anonymous reviews for a while. We'll see. **

**And thanks for not giving up on me!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	18. Broken

**A/N: First off: I am super sorry about the insanely long wait between updates. I would have typed over spring break, but the laptop didn't like the format I was using at school and there was this whole mess to sort out... **

**And I'm also sorry if I got your hopes up earlier. I went back and deleted my 'Unable to update' notices, and edited a part of Chapter Five. The story manager didn't like that, so i had to add it as an entirely new chapter, then move it back to its proper place. Sigh.**

**But yeah, here's the long- awaited Chapter eighteen! (Is it eighteen now? I've kinda lost track... oops.)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned, HP wouldn't be nearly half as good as it really is. Rowling, you're a goddess.**

* * *

"Yeah! Go James!" Liz yelled as James sped up the Quidditch pitch, the Quaffle tucked under his arm. David and Corey flew on either side of him, protecting his flanks from attacks from the Ravenclaw Beaters.

They had adopted their strategy from the first game, usually with James as the main scorer as he was the smallest (and therefore easiest to guard), though the other two took turns occasionally. Liz and the rest of the Marauders were happy for their friend, but when the constant, narcissistic drone invaded even their dreams, they began to wish he'd never made the team.

One of the Ravenclaw Chasers zoomed over James' head and took a swipe at the Quaffle, but James snapped it to his other hand and passed it to Corey. He and David veered off, leaving Corey to shoot.

"And Gryffindor scores! They now lead eighty-seventy!"

Liz joined in with the rest of her House as James, David, and Corey sped back to the middle of the field to intercept the Quaffle.

Sirius suddenly yelled as Naomi Vuong raced past them, a scarlet streak that was closely tailed by a blue. "Come on!"

Naomi abruptly wheeled her broom around in a neat pivot, the sun glinting off the Golden Snitch clenched in her hand.

The Gryffindor section of the crowd positively exploded in celebration. They now only needed one more win against Slytherin in order to win the Quidditch Cup.

"We won! We won!" Peter hugged Melissa (who had been sitting with them) tightly as he screamed with everyone else. She hugged him back, then ran off to find her friends, yelling over her shoulder that she would see him tomorrow.

"You know what this means?" Sirius asked. Without waiting for a reply, he grabbed Liz's and Peter's arms. "Party in the common room!" he began to drag them toward the exit, probably intending to go to the kitchens for food, but Liz stopped him.

"We can't," she said. "I mean, maybe for a bit, but-"

"What?" Sirius stopped, still grinning broadly, but there was a hint of confusion in his eyes.

Liz glanced around, then pointed to the exit, trying to convey that she didn't want to be overheard. Luckily, Sirius took the hint and he led her and Peter away from the crowd.

Once they were far enough away, Liz said, "We can probably celebrate for a little bit, you know, for James' sake, but Remus is still in the Hospital Wing." Personally, she would have preferred to just go up to her dorm and sleep, but the noise of the festivities more than likely wouldn't die down until midnight at the earliest.

Sirius hesitated, caught between wanting to stay and celebrate with James or keep Remus company. "Maybe we could spend five minutes in the common room, then go down to the Hospital Wing?"

"That would work," Peter said, "And James could come with us to see Remus; it's not like he has to celebrate in the common room."

Sirius smacked himself on the forehead. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"Not everyone can be as sensible as me," Peter said, completely straightfaced.

"Oh, shut up."

Their decision made, the trio headed back to the castle, though the boys had to keep slowing their pace so Liz wouldn't fall behind. She was still completely exhausted from the full moon the night before, and it showed in her barely-functioning brain. That, coupled with her coming off an adrenaline high from the match, made her even more lethargic. She still had no idea how Remus was able to keep going, especially considering that he had it ten times worse than she.

The full moon back in January hadn't been too bad for either of them, relatively speaking. Sirius had joked that Remus needed to 'fall ill' whenever Slughorn planned a dinner party. (To that, Remus only rolled his eyes.) February hadn't been too bad, either, but last night was brutal. Liz had been sick almost the whole time, and when madam Pomfrey carried Remus in a few minutes after dawn, Liz had barely recognized him under the mix of fresh and dried blood that covered his face and matted his hair.

Most of the injuries had been superficial, according to the matron, but Remus had managed to gouge his left side deep enough to expose his lower ribs. Liz's stomach had turned at the sight of his mangled flesh, and she vomited into the basin beside her bed.

Remus had woken up a few hours before the match was supposed to start, and finding his friends beside his bed, insisted that they go to support James. When Sirius protested, Remus argued that he could use the time to catch up on some much-needed sleep. They agreed to go, but promised they'd return after the match.

"Well, let's go to the kitchens for some food, stay at the party long enough to keep people from getting suspicious, then we can go see Remus," Liz said.

"While we're at it, we should grab some of those sweet buns that Moony likes," Sirius said as they pushed open the front doors. They made their way down to the kitchens, where they acquired a hamper of food from the house-elves that was so large, the children had a difficult time maneuvering it up eight flights of stairs, through the portrait hole, and into the common room.

They'd just finished setting food on the tables when the portrait hole was flung open and the scarlet tide of cheering students flooded into the room. The Gryffindor team was shoved to the center of the room, people slapping their backs and screaming their praises loud enough to make a banshee cringe.

Somebody tied a Gryffindor banner around David's neck like a cloak, butterbeers were poured for everyone, and the Wizarding Wireless was turned on in the middle of a Blazing Phoenix song. James disappeared into the crowd as the party began to get into full swing. Liz and Sirius exchanged exasperated looks, then began to push through the crowd.

When they managed to worm their way to the front, they found James and Warren playing- or, rather, showing off- with James' Quaffle. James rolled the ball down the back of one arm, across his shoulders, down the other arm, then he reverse-passed to Warren. The Keeper caught it with his head, balancing it precariously on his thick mop of hair, then he dropped the ball forward and kneed it to James. James swatted the Quaffle into the air, and within seconds, it was being tossed about over the heads of the crowd.

James turned to go to the table of food and spotted his friends lurking on the edge of the circle of people. He changed direction and hurried over to them.

"Hey, guys!" His eyes were shining with excitement and he was wearing an empty bowl upside-down on his head like a bizarre crown. "Did you _see_ me out there? I scored every goal except two!"

"Why is there a bowl on your head…?" asked Peter, eying it as though it would attack him.

"What, this?" James pulled the bowl off his head and inspected it. Crumbs in his hair gave him the appearance of being encased in his own personal snowglobe. "I actually have no idea how it got there, but it's pretty great, isn't it?"

"Yeah, great-" Sirius began, but James, drunk on his own victory, cut him off.

"That time when the game was about five minutes in, when I did that brilliant Porskoff Play _to myself_? Did you see that?"

"Yeah, it was great-" began Sirius. "I wanted to tell-"

"And when I used the Sloth Grip Roll to avoid _both_ Bludgers at once-"

"James!" Sirius yelled, losing his temper. The common room went silent, save for the wireless still playing. James waved to the onlookers and the party resumed.

"What?" James asked, looking baffled. "I was just-"

"James, we're really happy for you," Liz said, "But for the love of Merlin, please shut your mouth and listen for once!"

James' eyes widened, then he glowered at her, but he straightened his bowl, crossed his arms, and looked at them expectantly.

"We were going to see Remus today,' peter prompted. "_All _of us."

"I- er- well…" James suddenly looked embarrassed. "You see, Frank said he was going to give a toast later… and maybe a speech…"

Sirius smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Oh, no, I see." His tone was pleasant, but there was a caustic edge to his words. "Actually, I think we all do. It's not like we have anything more important to do than listen to you brag all night- oh, wait! We do!"

"Sirius-"

"Nah, don't bother to worry about it. I mean, I'm sure Remus will understand why one of his best friends couldn't be bothered to come visit him." Sirius grabbed Liz and Peter once more and dragged them from the common room.

"Er, Sirius?' Liz asked as she and Peter hurried to keep up with the tall boy's long, angry strides, "I know James was being a git back there, but do you really want him to visit Remus and do nothing but gloat?"

Sirius made a derisive noise.

Peter glanced at Liz. "He's been upset ever since the Quidditch season started up again, didn't you notice?" he muttered.

Liz thought back, trying to remember Sirius' general mood over the past three months. Sure, he'd seemed a bit tense, but she'd thought it was… well, she really wasn't sure what was going on. She'd just assumed he'd been having bad days- lots of them.

"Is it James?" Liz asked quietly. Peter shrugged.

"What else could it be?" he said. "Look at that fight they had when James made the team and Sirius didn't, but he bragged anyway. He just couldn't take a hint, even when Sirius kept getting irritated-"

"We all did," Liz argued, but the excuse sounded weak to her.

"Yeah, but none of us tried out for the team and didn't get in."

"Thanks for reminding me," Sirius growled. Liz and peter jumped; they hadn't realized that he could hear them.

Sirius turned to look at them. "Don't worry about it, okay? Once we win the Quidditch Cup, James' head will deflate."

All of them could hear the unspoken 'I hope' in his words. Liz privately thought that winning would only increase James' bragging, but as she didn't want to further upset Sirius, she said nothing.

When they knocked on the Hospital Wing's doors, an irate-looking Madam Pomfrey greeted them, but allowed them in when she saw who was visiting.

"He woke up about ten minutes ago," she said, ushering them inside and hurriedly locking the doors behind them. She seemed to do a quick head count. "Where's the noisy boy with the glasses?"

"Yeah, where _is_ James?" Remus called from the end of the ward.

"He couldn't come," Sirius answered curtly.

"Oh," said Remus, "Well, okay, I guess."

"Besides, he'd probably spend the entire visit bragging," Sirius added.

Remus gave them a searching look, taking in their disgruntled expressions and flushed faces. Once they were around his bed, he said, "James being a prat again?"

"Like you would not believe," Liz said, sitting heavily on the bed adjacent. She yawned and rubbed her eyes, feeling more drained than ever. "So, er, how are you doing?"

Remus grinned at her and she flushed, hoping he didn't notice. "Pretty good, actually, all things considered," he said, though he winced and put a hand to his ribs as he spoke.

"You know what'll cheer you up?" Peter said, reaching into his pocket and unwrapping a napkin that held three slightly squashed, but still warm, sweet buns. Remus perked up immediately.

"Whoa, thanks," he said, his eyes fixed on the food. Peter handed the buns to Remus and he tore into them, eating as though he hadn't had a proper meal in days. Of course, Liz thought bitterly, that was true to an extent. She glared at the floor, silently cursing James for not being there for Remus when he was most needed.

* * *

The three of them stayed with Remus for as long as they could, but at nine o'clock, Madam Pomfrey chased them out to let Remus sleep. Sirius was more than a little rankled at the rude ejection, but there wasn't anything he could do about it.

The party was still going as strong as ever when Sirius, Liz, and Peter climbed through the portrait hole. Liz immediately said good-night and headed for the girls' dorm, looking as tired as Remus.

Sirius didn't even bother to look for James- there was no need. He was standing on a table, a bottle of butterbeer clenched in his hand, yelling to the crowd.

"Really,' Sirius muttered as he stomped off to his dorm, "I like Quidditch as much as the next bloke, but this is just ridiculous!"

"Maybe you should just be patient…?" Peter meekly suggested. Sirius whirled around.

"You've seen how James has been acting all year," he snapped. "And we all saw how patience worked!"

Peter raised his hands apologetically and backed away a few steps. Sirius blew his hair out of his eyes.

"I'm sorry,' he said. He hadn't meant to be short with Peter. "I'm just- ugh!"

"It'll be okay, Sirius," Peter said, patting him on the back. "James might be acting like a git now, but he's a good person, not to mention your friend. Just give it some time."

XXX

Sirius tried to be patient like Peter suggested, but that idea flew out the window the morning of the Quidditch final.

All of the Marauders, minus James, were eating breakfast in the Great Hall. James, who had wanted to make sure his gear was absolutely perfect, stayed behind in the dorm, probaby posing in front of his mirror, Sirius thought. At least he wasn't boring them all to death by talking about how brilliant he'd be in the game.

When Sirius heard a loud screech above him, he figured the post had arrived, and was proven correct a second later when Peter looked up to get a newspaper dropped on his face. He immediately ripped it open, scanning the pages for news of Death Eater attacks.

"Anything?" Liz asked anxiously.

Peter flipped back through the paper, making sure he hadn't missed anything. "Nothing," he said, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Mind if I see that?" Remus asked. Peter handed it to him. Remus opened it and quickly disappeared behind the pages.

Sirius felt something land on his shoulder and slide to the ground. He ducked under the table to find an envelope addressed to him in an unfamiliar neat handwriting. He grabbed it and straightened up, curious as to who could be writing to him.

What he read instantly killed his good mood.

_Sirius,_

_I have both good news and bad. Andromeda was going to write to you last week to let you know- she's pregnant. The Healers at St. Mungo's told us it wold be a girl, which we were both very excited about. _

_However, a few days ago, Andromeda started feeling ill, and she was having bad stomach pains. We went to the hospital last night to get her checked out._

The handwriting below that sentence suddenly became very shaky.

_The Healers said there's been a complication with the precnancy, and although they might be able to do something about it, there's a high chance that they can't. Andromeda and the baby could both die._

_I don't know if it would be possible for you to get out of school for a few hours to come see her, but maybe a visit from her favourite cousin would help. I know it would definitely cheer her up. You're the only family member of hers who still cares._

_-Ted_

Sirius sat, frozen, clutching Ted's letter so tightly that he managed to rip it.

"Sirius?" asked Liz, waving a hand in front of his face. "What's wrong?"

Wordlessly, he handed her the letter; Remus looked over her shoulder, and Peter leaned over the table to read it as well.

Sirius' brain seemed unable to register the news. He felt like he was seeing everything in slow motion, as though he was trapped in a bad dream that he would wake from at any moment-

"Oh Merlin, Sirius-" Remus wrapped an arm around Sirius' shoulders, Peter took his hand, and Liz patted him on the back, but he barely noticed.

Andromeda might die. Sirius was the only family she had left, but she was also the only family _he _had left. Maybe it was selfish of him, but he didn't want her to die, she just couldn't! Who else would he have left then?

Sirius was intending to go to Professor Dumbledore and ask permission to visit his cousin, but when he took the letter back, he found his feet carrying him away from the head table, out of the Great Hall, up the main staircases to the seventh floor and to the Gryffindor common room. He realized as he was climbing through the portrait hole that all he really wanted at the moment was to be alone. He needed time to digest the news.

He'd completely forgotten that james was still in the dorm.

Sirius burst through the door and nearly collided with James, who yelped in surprise.

"Sirius? I thought you were still at breakfast!"

"I just got this letter-"

"What's it say?" James asked, glancing from the crumpled parchment to the wild look in Sirius' eyes.

"My cousin Andromeda's pregnant-"began Sirius.

"Oh, is that it?" James sighed and straightened his robes. "Fantastic, now I need to start over." He moved back in front of the mirror.

Sirius was speechless for a second, then he sputtered, "But there's been a problem. The baby-"

James rolled his eyes at Sirius' reflection. "Aww, awe you scawed of being ignowed fow a widdle baby?" He snorted and readjusted his arm braces.

That tiny dismissal was the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. All of Sirius' pent-up jealousy, frustration, and anger erupted like a shaken bottle of muggle soda, exploding in a terrifying display of pure, unadulterated malice.

"YOU'RE SUCH A BASTARD!" Sirius bellowed, "YOU'VE BEEN NOTHING BUT A STUCK-UP ASS EVER SINCE YOU MADE THE QUIDDITCH TEAM, THINKING YOU'RE SO MUCH BETTER THAN THE REST OF US, YOU DON'T HAVE TIME FOR YOUR FRIENDS ANYMORE!

"Hey!" James yelled, his face turning red, "I've been busy-"

"BUSY _BRAGGING_! 'LOOK AT ME, I'M SO AWESOME, WORSHIP ME, JUST FORGET THAT REMUS IS SICK IN THE HOSPITAL WING OR, I DON'T KNOW, SIRIUS' COUSIN MIGHT DIE?'"

"_How the_ _bloody hell was I supposed to know?_" screamed James, "It's not like you told me or anything!"

"Maybe that's because I couldn't get a damned word in edgewise," Sirius snarled. "'Your cousin's having a baby? Oh, that's nice, now shut up so I can make myself pretty for Quidditch-'"

"You're the one to talk," James sneered, "I'm not the one to take ten minutes to fix my hair in the morning."

"Never been a problem for you, seeing as how you fancy yourself looking like you've just got off your broom-"

"Hey! It makes me look cool!"

"I'm sorry, I forgot- it's no longer 'cool' to give a damn about what your friends are having to deal with! Bad enough Remus had to suffer for three months while you forgot about him in the Hospital Wing so you could play with your Quaffle, but my cousin is _dying!_"

"I-"

"She never deserved this! She was always a good person, not like you! I wish you were _dead!_"

"Get out of my face, Black!" James drew his wand, but Sirius wrenched the door open, stormed out, and slammed it shut so hard that it quivered violently in the frame for a few seconds.

"DEAD!" Sirius yelled again for emphasis, giving the door a vicious kick.

James began yelling a mix of swearwords and places he'd shove Sirius' wand, but Sirius stomped off to find Professor Dumbedore. He never thought he could feel such loathing for anyone, not even his parents or Snivellus, but at that moment, there was nobody he despised more than James Potter.

* * *

James continued yelling long after he knew Sirius had gone, but he didn't care. Black had absolutely no right saying those things; in fact, irrational though it might seem to anyone else, James was willing to bet that Black had made the whole story up as a desperate attempt to direct the attention that belonged to James onto himself.

"Who's being the stuck-up ass now, huh?" he yelled to the empty room. He glanced at the clock on his bedside table and jumped- the game would start in only ten minutes.

Cursing Black for having ruined perfection, James settled for making sure his armour wasn't twisted before he grabbed his Cleansweep and raced out.

"Look who finally decided to show up," Corey said when James skidded to a stop in the locker room.

"Leave him alone, Corey, he made it, didn't he?" Naomi chided.

David cleared his throat. "Now that we're all here," he said pointedly, "I'd like to review what we've been practicing. The Slytherins will be expecting James to take most of the shots, so he might as well be flying around the pitch with a giant 'kill me' sign stuck to his back. That's why we'll be mixing things up a little. Ashton, I want you to watch my back, and Michael, you'll cover Corey. If either of you see naomi in trouble, drop everything and help her _immediately_."

"What about me?" James asked, suddenly a little nervous now that it was certain he'd be flying solo.

"I want you to hang around mid-field, okay? No crazy stunts, no shots, no nothing. Corey and I will be counting on you to provide us with support and to block any of Slytherin's Chasers from getting close enough to our end to score. If you get the Quaffle, pass to one of us as fast as you can, because those Beaters will be looking for any excuse to take you out."

James nodded, licking his lips nervously.

"And Warren-" David looked to the Keeper. "Just do what you do best."

Warren grinned and gave him the thumbs-up.

"Now then, who's ready to win the Quidditch Cup?" roared David.

"We are!"

"Are we going to play our best?"

"Yeah!"

"If they foul us, will we foul them right back?"

"Yeah!"

"ARE WE GONNA WIN THIS?"

"YEAH!"

David punched the air. "Fly high, Gryffindors!" The team cheered, their shouts merging with the crowd's above.

They marched from the locker rooms, their hearts in their mouths from the anticipation of a nasty game. When the two teams emerged onto the field, the xrowd went into a frenzy, stamping their feet, whistling, cheering, hissing, and making such an uproar that the sounds merged into a rolling thunder that echoed over the Forbidden Forest, startling a flock of birds into the skies.

David and Gwenog led their teams to the center, where they locked hands. Both captains had their jaws clenched, their teeth bared in feral grins. Davis met Gwenog's hard eyes with an equally chilly stare.

Madam Hooch stepped between the two teams. "If I see even the _idea_ of fouling, I won't hesitate to award a penalty," she barked, looking hard from the Gryffindors to the Slytherins. When she seemed satisfied that she'd got her point across, she gave the familiar command: "Mount your brooms."

James swung a leg over his Cleansweep, drawing new strength from the familiar ash handle. He tensed, waiting for the whistle.

A second later, the whistle shrilled and James kicked off hard, leaving the ground and his stomach far behind.

"Aaaand they're off! Gryffindor Chaser Corey Spinnet immediately takes possession of the Quaffle- no, intercepted by Pucey, Pucey passes to Montague, Montague ducks to avoid Leigh's Bludger- nice try there, Ashton- OH! Montague is hit by the other Bludger, but manages to keep a hold on the Quaffle!"

James, who had been lurking near center-field, flew forward to intercept Montague. He looped around the burly Slytherin, snatched the Quaffle, and zipped away before Montague could retaliate.

"David!" he yelled, but he locked his eyes on Corey. As he hoped, the Slytherin Chasers moved to block David, leaving Corey completely unguarded. James threw the Quaffle and it sailed in a beautiful arc towards Corey- except that it flew too far to the left. Corey wouldn't have been able to catch it if he'd been riding a Nimbus 1001.

Corey dived after the Quaffle, managing to snag it as it fell, but they'd lost their advantage and the Slytherins closed in. Gwenog flew straight at Corey, startling him and causing him to drop his guard just in time for Pucey to swoop in and rip the Quaffle from his arms.

Before James could react, Pucey had sped toward the Gryffindor hoops, feinted left, and thrown right.

"Slytherin scores!"

"What the hell was that?" David yelled, flying over to James. "That should have been ours!"

"It was an accident!" James yelled back.

"Don't let it happen again," David ordered before moving forward to receive the ball from a flustered Warren.

On the next play, David and Corey kept the Quaffle to themselves, only passing to James when absolutely necessary.

Fuming at the unfair treatment, and still bitter from Black's words, James decided to just disregard David's orders and go it alone. He'd scored most of the goals ever since their first game; it was only fair that he get some of the glory for the final.

Slytherin managed to score again, making the score twenty-none.

Warren hurled the Quaffle towards Corey, but James shot forward, dodged a Bludger that came pelting out of nowhere, and snatched the Quaffle when he was several feet above Corey.

"Potter!" Corey yelled furiously, but James was already halfway down the field. James aimed for the hoop the Slytherin Keeper was guarding, betting that he would move to block a different goal. After all, only an idiot would shoot for the Keeper's hoop.

James' hunch was right. The Keeper lunged for the center hoop, leaving the right completely unguarded. James put it away easily.

"Gryffindor scores! Slytherin leads, twenty-ten!"

James turned to find David and Corey bearing down on him.

"Good job," David said reluctantly, "But that was out of line."

"I scored, didn't I?" James protested.

"That's not the point. The _point _is, we're a team."

"Funny, it didn't seem like it earlier."

"Fine. We'll work this one together, but stay spread out. The Beaters can't target all of us at once!" David flew off to pursue Gwenog, who had just received the Quaffle.

"You heard the captain, split up!" Corey said. He veered left and James went right. He knew he'd just needed to show his teammates that he wasn't totally reliant on their help.

Working together, with an astonishing display of accuracy and power from their Beaters, the Gryffindor Chasers managed to accumulate fifty more points, leaving Slytherin in the dust.

James never even saw it coming. He wasn't in possession of the Quaffle, he had only scored twice, and he was nowhere near the Slytherin Chasers at the time.

All he knew was that he heard the high-pitched whistle of something flying at a great speed, then there was a loud _CRACK, _and an intense, blinding pain exploded in the back of his head.

James wasn't aware of the screams of the crowd as he plummeted to the earth, blood seeping from his cracked skull. He wsn't aware of being rushed to the Hospital Wing, or of his friends around him, begging him to wake up.

Really, he wasn't aware of anything. Maybe he never would be again.

* * *

**James, WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY**

**A/N: I'm such a horrible person. :/ My feelz ****broked.**

**Anyway, I've already finished the next two chapters. It's really just a matter of typing them up. I'm also almost done with the LAST chapter of War Upon Us, so as soon as I'm done, I'll be starting on Part 3: Black Moon.**

**Thanks so much for your amazing reviews and support! It really makes my day, seeing the encouragement. Cheers!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	19. Bitter Words

**A/N: Okay, okay, I finally managed to get this next chapter out before the day is over! Yay! I would have had it posted sooner... except... uh... I forgot...**

***Ducks airborne bricks***

**I'm sorry, okay? *sigh* But I was at ConGlomeration over the weekend (And my brother and my friendly-friend won 'Best Performance' in the Masquerade for our portrayal of the Marauders!) and I have some HUGE news to share with you guys that I really hope you'll like- but I'll save that for after the chapter. I'll stop a-yapping now and let you read. :D**

**No, wait- i need to reply to some reviews.**

**Guest reviewer luanna: Thanks for the enthusiasm!**

**AnimexXxGoddess: Iunno if I ever got around to replying to your review (sorry!), but thanks for that!**

**Okay, NOW on with the story!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, but I'm hoping that one day, some of my own creations ****will become commonplace in fanfiction... Hehehehe.**

* * *

Andromeda smiled at Sirius as he stood to leave. "Don't worry about me," she said, though her knuckles were white as she clenched her hands. "I love you, no matter what happens, understand?"

"Yeah…" Sirius bent down and kissed his cousin on the cheek, gave Ted an awkward hug, then he left, turning back to look at them one last time.

Ted, his young face now lined with years of worry that had set in just under a week, hovered near Andromeda, making sure he did whatever he could to make her feel more comfortable. Andromeda, her normally voluminous black hair now stringy and limp with sweat, her belly distended under the sheets, gave her husband a weak grin. They bent their heads together so their foreheads touched, and Sirius felt a lump in his throat. What if they were saying good-bye, just in case…?

He didn't want to think about it. He couldn't.

"I love you, too," he whispered.

Once he was back in the hallway where his cousin couldn't see him, Sirius leaned against the wall and allowed himself to cry.

His whole life, his whole goddamned life, he'd been shunned by his family just because he didn't share their twisted opinions. Why was it that all the bad things in life happened to the nicest people? It just didn't make sense.

Sirius glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed. He'd been allowed only an hour to visit Andromeda, and he was due back in a few minutes.

One of the trainee Healers had been assigned the task of keeping an eye on Sirius while he was at St. Mungo's, and was also supposed to bring Sirius back to Hogwarts. Floo Powder wasn't allowed at the hospital, as it was too unsanitary and could cause breathing problems, and Sirius wasn't able to Apparate. Now that it was time to go, Healer Redheart led him out of the hospital and onto the crowded muggle street, and down an alley that had been set up as an apparition point. Sirius took the Healer's arm and she twisted away from him. He clamped his mouth shut, not wanting to find out what it would be like to throw up while Apparating.

When they appeared right outside the Hogwarts gates, Sirius was surprised to see Professor McGonagall waiting for them.

"Thank you, Dianne. I hope he didn't cause any trouble?"

Healer Redheart shook her head. "I don't know why you called him a troublemaker, Professor. He was very well- behaved."

Sirius scowled at how they talked about him like he was a naughty child. Healer Redheart Disapparated, and Professor McGonagall began to open the gates. Sirius chewed on the inside of his cheek while he waited, wondering if the Quidditch final was over. He looked at McGonagall for some indication of who won, and was startled by the worry on her face.

"Professor?" Sirius asked, but she didn't acknowledge him until she opened the gates, allowed him through, and shut them behind him once more. Only then did she look him in the eye.

"Yes, Mr. Black- I think you'd best come with me." She turned and started walking back to the castle.

"I didn't do it," Sirius said automatically, thinking his friends and Potter had got into trouble while he was gone.

"No, you didn't," Professor McGonagall said, "After all, it wasn't like you were there-"

"What happened?" Sirius interrupted. Professor McGonagall stopped dead, and Sirius almost ran into her.

"I just don't know how to say this," she said, "But Mr. Potter was injured in the Quidditch match."

"Okay…?" Sirius asked, wondering why she thought that mattered. Potter had probably gotten fouled and was now milking a small injury for attention.

"Sirius-"

Maybe it was McGonagall using his first name, but something in her voice caught his attention. Realization struck him and Sirius felt his stomach drop to his feet.

"James!" He took off, racing for the castle, leaving Professor McGonagall far behind. Sirius wrenched open the main doors and hurtled across the entrance hall and up several flights of stairs until, struggling for breath, he skidded to a stop in front of the Hospital Wing doors. He heaved them open, terrified of what he'd find.

It wasn't as bad as he'd imagined.

It was worse.

Although Madam Pomfrey had managed to staunch the bleeding, she hadn't yet cleaned the red stain that had spread from under James' head. His already messy hair was sticky with blood, and his breathing, while rough and labored, was shallow.

"No-!" Sirius stumbled forward, tears blurring his vision as peter hurried to keep him from falling. Sirius' brain faintly registered that Liz and Remus were there as well, failing to hide their tears.

"What happened?" Sirius demanded.

"James- Quidditch- Bludger-" Liz choked. "The Slytherin Beater, Bradley-" She gulped and shook her head, either unable or unwilling to speak.

"He _says_ he didn't mean to do it," Remus said, his face tight. "Thing is, though, James wasn't anywhere near the Quaffle when he was hit."

"Can't you do something?" Sirius asked desperately, looking at Madam Pomfrey.

She shook her head sadly. "If I try to wake him up, I could damage his brain. I told you that last year, remember?"

"But- but- he's got to wake up! He will, won't he?"

"I don't know."

Sirius' world seemed to tilt violently to one side. Liz and Remus caught him before he could hit the floor, and they heaved him onto the bed nearby, where he sat, gasping for air, a pained coughing shaking his body.

"Sirius?" Peter knelt next to him, peering at him. "Are you okay?"

"It's my fault," he whispered.

"What? I couldn't hear-"

"It's my fault!" Sirius yelled. "My fault, my fault-"

"Mr. Black!" madam Pomfrey cried, "Control yourself!"

Sirius leapt off the bed with a wordless howl; Peter and Remus lunged forward and seized him under the arms, dragging him to the door. Liz hurried in front of them and held the door open, narrowly avoiding Sirius' flailing feet as he kicked and fought to break his friends' hold.

The students they passed in the corridor turned to stare curiously as Peter, Remus, and Liz dragged the struggling boy up to the Gryffindor common room. Sirius had only one thought lodged in his mind: if he could get to James, if he could tell him he was sorry, then James would wake up and everything would be okay.

Sirius was still fighting to break free when his friends dragged him through the portrait hole, into the dorm, and dumped him on the bed. Sirius jumped up and bolted for the exit, but Liz lunged at the door and slammed it shut. As Sirius fumbled with the handle, the other three grabbed him again and hauled him back.

"Sorry, Sirius," said Remus, pulling out his wand. "P_etrificus Totalus!_"

Sirius' arms and legs snapped together and he fell backward onto his bed. He was furious, but since he couldn't lash out in anger, he slowly began to calm down.

"I'll lift the curse if you promise not to attack us," Remus said.

Sirius rolled his eyes, and Remus unfroze him. Sirius slowly sat up, noticing the others watching him warily.

"Okay," Peter said, "What was _that_ all about?"

All of Sirius' self-loathing drained out of him, leaving him empty and emotionless.

"James and I-" Sirius stared at the wall. "The letter that I got- and I went up to the common room- and Quidditch-"

Remus put his hands on Sirius' shoulders. "Sirius, I know you're upset, but please try to speak in full sentences, because I'm not following your story at all."

Sirius took a deep breath and collected his thoughts. "When I left you guys, I went up to the common room. I ran into James and we got into an argument. He was more worried about fixing his Quidditch gear than my news about Andromeda, and I- I told him I wished he was dead."

Sirius couldn't bring himself to meet his friends' eyes. "This is all my fault."

The stationary emotional rollercoaster Sirius had been experiencing since breakfast suddenly plummeted, and he broke down.

Remus, Peter, and Liz all hugged him, telling him empty words in an attempt to make him feel better: "it's not your fault." "You couldn't have known." "Everything will be okay."

Sirius pushed them all away and wrenched his bed's hangings shut. They could say what they wanted, but it made no difference. James was lying, unconscious, in the Hospital Wing. Sirius had said he wished James dead, and now, he feared more than anything that his wish would come true.

He'd as good as killed his best friend.

* * *

**A/N: So, eyup, only two more chapters until the end of this fanfic! Holy crap, I'm excited just thinking about it!**

**But, I'll go ahead and tell you all the fantastic news:**

**When I was at ConGlomeration, there was a panel on Saturday that was basically a get-together of four local publishing companies where up- and- coming writers could pitch their novel ideas. Guess who attended?****  
**

**That's right, me! And even better was the fact that all four publishers said my idea sounded really good and that they'd love to see my finished manuscript, and would pick me up on it if it was good enough!**

**SQUEEEEEEEEE! :'D**

**I was blubbering like a baby for several long minutes afterwards, I was so ecstatic! I mentioned in an A/N I don't know what chapter/fanfic ago that I was working on an original story about demons and demon fighters, and that's the one I pitched to the publishers- but I'd like to say something.**

**Every single one of you who reviewed, gave me advice, corrected me when I had inconsistencies, and watched me grow as an author who wrote Mary-Sues and bad prose are the ones who gave me the confidence to do this. If I hadn't started writing here on ****fan fiction, I wouldn't have developed my talents to where I am now. I'm forever grateful to each and every one of you for your support and encouragement, and you've definitely deserved a place in the acknowledgements section of my novel.**

**I don't know when I'll finish it, or even if it'll make it to the press at all, but I won't give up on my dream of writing my own books. I don't intend to stop writing fanfiction, though! It's only because of this that I ever thought I'd be good enough to try for becoming published.**

**Thank you, every one of you!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	20. Uncertainty

**A/N: Hay, everypony! I am SO incredibly sorry for the Riddikulusly long wait (Seems to be a running theme, huh?) since I've had this chapter written for almost a MONTH now. I've only just found the time to type it up and post it... Grr.**

**The last chapter will be out sometime near the end of May. I have it about a quarter of the way done, and am SUPER excited to start on part three! Don't worry, I'm not abandoning this yet!****  
**

**As for the publishers, I've been in contact with one and have gotten some encouraging responses for my first chapter- and a request for the next three! So WOOT!**

**I might have a bit of trouble responding to reviews for a bit- don't worry, I'll be able to, just not while I'm at home!- since I have to spend my time studying for finals and the dreaded AP exams. *facedesk***

**So, here's the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I am too wiped out to think of a funny/witty/snarky way to write this. Bleh.**

* * *

Pain.

Darkness.

Silence.

No, that wasn't right- there was some kind of noise out there in the void. Muffled voices.

The noise hurt. It was easier to slip back into sleep's embrace than to try to make sense of it. Just attempting to form a solid thought was agony.

Sometimes, it seemed there was a tiny light in the distance, but it always proved impossible to reach. The question of what it was was maddening.

More voices. Yelling. The yelling brought pain. Moaning didn't make the pain go away, but it made the noises stop.

He tried to think. Name. What was his name? (What did the word 'name' even mean?)

Painful thoughts, excruciatingly painful. Someone was speaking.

"James?" Someone touched his- what was the word?- oh, yes, hand, that was it. Hand. What a lovely word. It opened the floodgate for more: foot, knee, elbow, wrist, ankle, head-

"Can you hear me?" the voice asked. "James?"

Was that his-? James felt his face scrunch up as he was assaulted by names. He was James. There were others- Sirius, Remus, Peter, Liz-

Maybe the voice belonged to one of them? James tried to speak, but the words escaped his throat as an incoherent groan. That effort alone tired him, and he fell asleep once more.

His waking and dreaming hours were so similar that it was almost impossible to tell them apart. The only difference between them was touch. Sure, James dreamed that he could feel people holding him, but he could tell it was just a memory from his brain. When he was awake, he could feel people holding his hands, or squeezing his shoulder, or gently brushing their fingertips over his forehead. James tried to respond, but all he could manage was a twitch of his fingers.

Whenever the nice people came to visit, James loved every second of it. They were his only tie to the world now, even if he could barely acknowledge their presence.

As James spent more time with the nice people, he began to put faces to voices, and names to faces.

The only thing he couldn't seem to do was wake up.

Sirius sat by James' bed, holding his friend's cold, clammy hand in his own. James' fingers twitched occasionally, but other than that, it was hard to believe he was still alive.

It had been almost a week since James had been injured, and he hadn't seemed to make any progress in recovering. It was bad enough he'd been hit in the head; even worse that he'd taken the blow at the base of his skull.

Though the others stated multiple times that James' accident hasn't been his fault, Sirius could feel a heavy cloud of guilt hanging over his head, a constant reminder of the hateful words he'd said before the Quidditch match. If James didn't recover, he'd never forgive himself.

Tomorrow, if James still hadn't woken, he would be moved to St. Mungo's.

"Ah, James," Sirius whispered, "Even when you're unconscious, you're still a jerk, aren't you?" He laughed bitterly. "I sit here all day long, or at least whenever I can manage, and you still refuse to acknowledge me. You'd think you'd have women up by now, at least for a little bit, you know?" Sirius sighed and gave James' hand a squeeze. He grinned slightly when a thought struck him. "I know why you're doing this," he said. "You're just gonna stay asleep until the end of the year when finals are over, isn't that right?"

James remained as motionless as ever. Sirius felt a surge of hope for a moment when he thought he saw James' eyelids flutter, but it was only his imagination.

James could hear him- the boy with calloused hands, Sirius- talking to him. No, talking to himself. He thought James was still oblivious to everything around him.

He wasn't. Although James still couldn't track the time in his head, it had been three days since he'd regained the full use of thought processing. He'd heard Madam Pomfrey telling his friends that if he couldn't wake up by tomorrow, he'd be transferred to St. Mungo's. James didn't think he could bear it if he were to be separated from the others.

If he thought waking up was a challenge before, it soon turned into a desperate struggle against his own mind. He just needed to give them a sign that he was getting better, but if he couldn't move...

James mentally frowned as be concentrated on the hand that Sirius was grasping.

* * *

Sirius just sat by James, feeling completely alone. Remus and Liz were great friends, and it was nice having Peter around, too, but it just wasn't the same as having James.

It wasn't his friends' fault that they weren't in the Hospital Wing with him. Sirius had flat-out refused to go to class for two days, but on the third, Professor McGonagall had to come and threaten him with a year's worth of detentions if he skipped again. Sirius now spent every free moment he had in the Hospital Wing, whether it was between classes, after lessons had ended for the day, or even during mealtimes. He would have probably starved by now if Remus, Liz, and Peter didn't make sure to save food for him.

Sirius glanced at the clock on the wall, noting that it would probably be another quarter hour before the others returned. He looked back at James' pale face.

"All I'm asking is that you wake up and be okay."

He closed his eyes.

When he felt pressure on his fingers, he thought he was imagining it. Not daring to believe- to hope- that he wasn't hallucinating, he cracked an eye open.

Even with his own eyes telling him he was right, Sirius still couldn't quite accept it, like he was in a dream where he knew what was happening wasn't real.

Sirius blinked, his emotions colliding so violently that be could only react with numbness. He stared at his hand, and finally, he realized he truth:

James was squeezing his hand.

Swallowing, Sirius squeezed back. "James, can you hear me?"

The pressure increased. Was it just a coincidence?

"Er, two squeezes is yes, one is no?" he said hesitantly. If it turned out it was just wistful thinking, he could very well be talking to something as inanimate as the wall.

Two squeezes.

Sirius' heart leaped in his chest, and it took all of his self-restraint to keep from pouncing on James in a tacklehug. "Madam Pomfrey!" Sirius yelled, "James is awake!"

The nurse came rushing out of her office, but scowled when al she saw was the too-familiar sight of Sirius holding James' limp hand. Sirius waved her over impatiently.

"I know it doesn't look like it," he said, "But he can hear me-he squeezed my hand, right, James?"

Almost unwillingly, Madam Pomfrey's eyes flicked to James' hand in time to see it clench and unclench twice.

"You're going to have to leave, Mr. Black," she said. "I don't need any distractions."

"But-"

"Now!" barked Madam Pomfrey. Sirius reluctantly released James' hand and trudged to the doors. The moment he was out, the doors slammed shut behind him with an audible click. Sirius pressed his ear to the door, but he could only hear Madam Pomfrey murmuring softly. Frustrated that he'd been kicked out, Sirius sank to the floor and leaned his head against the wall, picking absently at his scuffed trainers.

Nearly ten minutes passed before Sirius heard footsteps echoing up the corridor as the rest of the Marauders rounded the corner. Each of them was clutching a napkin full of food, somehow managing to keep from spilling despite their hurried pace. When they saw Sirius on the floor, their faces paled almost in unison and they broke into a run.

"What happened?" Remus asked frantically, skidding to a stop about a foot away. "Is James alright?"

Sirius looked at him, stuck between anxiety and relief. He took a second to gather his thoughts, then quickly relayed the past few minutes.

Liz let out a few choice words when Sirius told them that they wouldn't be let in to see James until Madam Pomfrey decided she would allow visitors. "He's been out for a week and we aren't even able to-!" She kicked the wall viciously, which led to another torrent of words when she stubbed her toe.

Peter put a hand on her shoulder. "Whoa, there, calm down." He backed off quickly when Liz whirled around.

Remus stepped between them before Liz could take a swing at Peter. "We don't need to get so worked up," he said. "It shouldn't be too long before we're allowed in to see James." Liz scowled, but she folded her arms and sat down in a huff. Sirius breathed a sigh of relief. Trust Remus to act as the voice of reason.

They settled in to wait, but the minutes stretched out maddeningly, almost as if time was mocking them. Sirius banged his head softly against the wall, bored out of his mind. He jumped when the doors creaked open.

"He's awake," Madam Pomfrey said, looking relieved.

"James!" Sirius yelled, leaping to his feet. Madam Pomfrey hissed and slashed her hand through the air.

"Be _quiet_!" she shushed him. "He has a bad headache and you don't need to be making such a racket anyway!"

"Okay, okay, fine. I'll be quiet. Can we go in now?" Sirius said impatiently.

"Yeah, can they come in now?" James' weak voice called from inside. The Marauders exchanged excited glances as Madam Pomfrey pulled the door open wide enough to admit them.

Sirius had never seen anything more wonderful. James was still lying down, but he'd managed to raise his head enough to see them as they hurried to his side. For the second time that day, Sirius had to keep himself from catching James in a hug. He settled for an awkward one-arm half hug instead.

"You have no idea how much we missed you," Sirius said, barely able to keep tears from escaping him.

"I missed you, too," James said quietly. "I was out for a while, but I remember you guys stayed with me whenever you could."

"We would have stayed longer," Peter apologized, "But here was this thing called school..."

"You should have skived classes," James said dismissively. Liz and Peter laughed.

Sirius smiled, but he fidgeted when James grinned at him. "James... about what I said before the match- I'm so sorry." He ran a hand over his face. "I just got so mad, I thought you cared more about Quidditch than about your friends, and my cousin, and I just blew up. If you'd died-"

James cut I'm off. "But I didn't, right? And...you're not be only one who needs to apologize." He looked down at his lap. "I was being a right prat, wasn't I? Just because I'm a brilliant Chaser doesn't mean I should have been hatpin on about it. And Remus-" James glanced back up. "I'm sorry so wasn't there for you that one night."

Remus scratched the back of his head, looking awkward. "It's okay-"

"No, it's not. I should have been with you, not celebrating some stupid game."

Sirius grimaced. "Well, it's good that you think it's just a stupid game, because we lost the final."

"WHAT?!" James yelled, then clutched his head. "Ow!"

"Okay, the boy's getting far too excited for his own good, now get out!" Madam Pomfrey ordered, flapping her arms and chasing them to the doors.

"We'll come back tomorrow!" yelled Liz as the doors slammed in their faces.

They stood outside for a moment, then Peter's face broke into a wide smile. "James is okay!" he cheered, hugging them all tightly. The Marauders became a tangle of arms as the embraced, relief washing over them. Sirius took advantage of the confusion to wipe his eyes, not wanting anyone to see his tears.

* * *

James was still confined to the Hospital Wing, but now that he was conciliatory and able to communicate, being stuck in bed for another week or so didn't seem that bad.

Remus made sure to let (or rather, force) James to look over the notes for the classes he'd missed, insisting the teachers would expect him to keep up with the work now that he was awake. James wasn't pleased, but he knew Remus was just trying to make sure he was ready for their finals. To make up for Remus' nagging, Sirius stopped by before classes the day after James woke up with a copy of _Quidditch through the Ages_ and his _Martin Miggs_ collection.

Peter never failed to share amusing stories about the events of the day, and had even taken to watching Lily for James. There wasn't much to report, though James did learn that Lily's favorite dessert was treacle tart, which he filed away for future reference. He actually thought it was a sign that they were meant to be together; treacle tart was James' favorite dessert, too.

Liz would stay in the Hospital Wing with James when she had the time, bringing here and James' chess sets, which was a welcome way to pass the time once he'd finished his borrowed books.

As James recovered, he began looking towards the end of the year, knowing that the school would be anticipating an even more spectacular prank than last year's. However, he didn't think pulling a prank would be the best idea, since by the end of March, Gryffindor was in the lead for the House Cup and he really wanted to win- even tough it wasn't as good as winning the Quidditch Cup. Maybe that meant a different, more unconventional, prank was in order.

A few days after James was due to be released from the Hospital Wing, the second-year students had to choose their classes for the third year. Peter dithered between the different electives, worried about picking something that would be too difficult for him.

"Let's see, we have Arithmancy-" Liz made a face and crossed that off her list. "No thank you."

"Ancient Runes sounds fascinating," Remus said. Peter grinned at him; he could definitely see Remus excelling in that class.

"You know," James said, struggling to sit up higher in bed, "We should all pick one class that we'll have together. Wouldn't that be great?"

"I vote Care of Magical Creatures," Sirius said quickly.

Remus shrugged. "That doesn't seem too bad."

Peter nodded when they looked at him. Maybe that class wouldn't be terrible- and, of course, with a teacher like Professor Kettleburn, it definitely wouldn't be boring.

Peter shifted in his seat, then said, "I think for my other one, I'll do Divination. Melissa has an older brother who took that class, and apparently, it's a good way to waste time."

"Sounds easy enough," James said, "But I'm actually going to take Muggle Studies."

"Why's that?" Peter asked.

James shrugged and smiled sheepishly. "Well, you know, Lily's a Muggleborn, so I thought if I knew some more about Muggles, she might start to fancy me a bit."

"I heard her earlier today," Peter said thoughtfully. "She said she wanted to take Muggle Studies, to 'see what it was like'." He looked at Liz. "Are you going to do that, too?"

"Nah, I'm going with Divination- it should be easy enough for me." She grinned. "So if you sign up for it, we'll have it together."

"I can do that," Peter said. He checked off the boxes on his sheet. "I'll leave my third slot for studying."

James gave him the stink-eye. "If you're going to have a free period, you are _not_ going to use it for studying! What kind of Marauder are you?"

"Lay off him, James," Sirius said. "He could really use the time, you know?" The boys cracked up.

Peter looked at his hands. He wasn't stupid, he just needed help with school sometimes. Maybe it took some time to learn things, but once he learned something, he almost always recalled things perfectly.

"It would be nice to have free time to spend how you like," Liz said. "I'm just long to take two classes."

"Me too," said Sirius. A slow smile spread across his face. "I know what I'm taking," he sang, marking something on his form. Peter peeked over his shoulder.

"Muggle Studies?" he said, surprised. "I didn't think that would interest you."

"Nope, but it's sure to piss off my parents," Sirius laughed. "Besides, it's Muggle Studies. It can't be that hard."

Remus looked up when they all turned to him. "I guess that leaves me?" he asked. He scratched X's in the boxes next to Care of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, and Arithmancy.

"Moony, why?" James wailed. "Three electives? Three? What kind of monster are you?"

Remus steadily met James' disbelieving eyes. "The kind who needs to make his school career look as good as possible so he has a slightly better chance of getting a job in the future."

James ducked his head, the back of his neck reddening.

They sat in awkward silence, until Peter glanced at the clock and startled. "Oh, Merlin, I'm sorry guys, but I've gotta go!"

"Go where?" Liz asked as he jumped up and ran out, silently berating himself for having lost track of time.

As he headed across the grounds, he stopped by one of the flowerbeds near the greenhouses and gathered a fistful of irises before continuing on his way to the lake.

There she was, waiting at the water's edge by the tree where they'd sat together before Christmas. She was skipping rocks, or at least, attempting to.

Melissa turned when she heard Peter's footfalls and grinned at him. "Hey," she said. Peter, out of breath, held up the flowers in reply. Melissa's smile widened. "Oh, thank you," she said, taking a small sniff.

"Sorry I'm late-" Peter began, but Melissa cut him off.

"No, it's fine. You were with your friends, I guess?" She shrugged. "I don't mind that you want to spend time with James, especially after his accident. How's he doing?"

"Much better now," Peter said, a little confused. He thought girls got upset if their boyfriend showed up late.

"That's great!" Melissa said happily. She turned back to the lake and flicked her wrist, sending the rock she'd been holding across the water. It slapped once and sank like a stone.

Peter shook his head to chase out the bad (non)comparison. "Er, do you want me to show you how to do that?" he offered.

"Yes, please." Melissa began to scoop up some more rocks. Peter stooped and gathered a pile as well.

"Okay, the first thing you need to do is find a good, flat rock," Peter said. He scanned Melissa's stockpile and nodded to himself. "Good. Er, can you show me how you've been throwing?"

Melissa drew back and released as though she was throwing a frisbee. There wasn't enough force behind it, and it sank immediately.

"That was a good try, but you aren't throwing hard enough," Peter explained.

"So, like this?" Melissa's next attempt was noticeably better.

"See? You're already improving," said Peter. Melissa tried again and managed to get two skips. Peter felt a warm glow in his chest as he watched, but at the same time, he wished he could be talented in something other than skipping rocks and building snow forts. Something that would make him cooler.

When they grew tired of skipping stones, Peter and Melissa wandered around the lake, watching the fairies that zipped away at their approach, and lifting their faces to the cool spring breeze.

Peter knew he had to enjoy it while it lasted. It wouldn't be long before he would have to start studying for exams, when he'd be stuck inside all day. It wasn't just that, though; the Daily Prophet's reports of attacks had been growing more worrisome, as bad the rumors. Just yesterday, he'd heard some students in Charms say that the head politician behind the Muggle Protection Act had been found dead in his home, an expression of pain frozen on his face as though he'd been tortured to death. The Death Eaters seemed to be targeting anyone who supported Muggles, and the only way to guarantee safety was to be a pure-blooded bigamist like Sirius' parents.

Peter was distracted from his dark thoughts when Melissa took his hand. For now, he decided, he could forget about that. War would be upon them soon, so he would have to enjoy moments like this whenever he could.

Peter gazed out over the lake, looking to the mountains. The sky was a beautiful, almost surreal blue, but all he could see was a brewing storm.

**A/N: Don't forget, my lovelies- the last chapter will be up by the end of May! Who's excited?**

***crickets***

**Oh, shut up, you lot.**

**So, the 12th (yesterday, as of the time of posting) was speshul for three reasons! (Prepare for lots of exclamation points.)**

**1) It was Mother's Day (Happy Mother's day, mom!)**

**2) It was exactly one year ago that I first posted Part One on FFN! Ebony is now a year old and still going! Wow! (The reason why the publishing date says the 19th is because I accidentally deleted the story when I tried to post the second chapter. Whyyyyyyy.**

**3) It was my birthday! I'm now sixteen! (Holy crap, I'm sixteen. Two more years and I'll be off to college. Meep.) I got to expand my wand collection: I now have Dumbledore's, as well as Hermione's and Lupin's. So HAPPY. And also Lego Hungarian Horntail set, and Deathly Hallows triangle necklace from The Boyfriend. So, please give birthday reviews!**

**Uhh, what else...?**

**Oh, yeah, we (as in, my mom and dad) are building an airplane in our garage. It's a do-it-yourself four seater and it probably won't be done for like ten more years. But I'm still psyched for that!**

**And mom is almost done building her Iron Man costume. Let me say this: Mom, you are a freaking genius. NOW EVERYONE SHALL KNOW OF YOUR AMAZINGNESS and please don't get a swelled head. :)**

**So, yeah, that's pretty much it with me. Review or I will set the Guinea Piggehs on you!**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


	21. The Calm Before the Storm

**A/N: Okay, okay, I know I said this would be out by the end of May. Feel free to flame and all that good stuff. (Just please make them interesting. I need a good laugh.) I'm sorry I didn't have this out until now. I had most of the chapter finished until almost the end, which was when we got out of school and I suddenly found myself playing Minecraft and Pokemon every moment I got, not to mention wasting a bunch of time on Pottermore. (WHY WON'T IT UPDATE ALREADY?) So, procrastination, plus general writer's block, are the excuses this time. Why do you put up with me? Siriusly, PM me if you want the chapters out sooner, guilt trips and knowing I'm dissappointing people is a very good motivation.**

**Anyway, you probably can't expect part three (Black Moon) to be up any sooner. I have the general plot already planned out, and the first six chapters planned in detail (AND the Sorting Hat's song, which is pretty good if I do say so myself), but my boyfriend of a year and eight months is moving to Florida on the seventeenth, which is like a two day trip away from where we live, so I'm probably not going to be feeling up to writing. I'll probably be wallowing in self-pity and trying my hardest not to pull a Bella Swan and go catatonic on you guys. **

**If you can't tell, I'm pretty upset. So if the angst comes out in part three, you know why.**

**Anyway, enough of my moping! The overdue final chapter of War Upon Us is here for your enjoyment!**

**Disclaimer: I'm not a genius like J.K. Rowling. I'm just borrowing her characters for the time being. Thanks, though, JKR!**

* * *

As they entered the last month of term, finals loomed on the horizon, their threatening presence sending Liz, Remus, and Peter into a frenzy of studying. James and Sirius were absolutely no help. The only time Liz could remember them ever being worried about tests was for the finals last year, and they had apparently decided it had been a waste of their time since they always found the loudest, most obnoxious things to do while the others were studying.

Liz had to grit her teeth to keep from yelling when the two boys got into what might have been their biggest fight yet.

"Your mum's so old, she babysat Dumbledore!"

"Your mum's so ugly, when a dementor Kissed her, it _died_!"

"Your mum's so fat, her Patronus is a cake!"

"Shut up!" Liz yelled, slamming her Charms book onto the table. "Some of us are actually trying to study!"

Sirius balled up a piece of paper and lobbed it at her. "Aw, c'mon, Liz! We were jsut having fun. You should try it sometime."

Remus sighed. "Would it be so difficult to have fun somewhere else? Or, you could try being quiet- how about you guys see who can keep their mouth shut the longest?"

James and Sirius looked at each other for a moment. "I lose!" they yelled at the same time.

Remus pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm going to the library."

"Wait for me," said Liz hurriedly, gathering her books.

"Me, too!" cried Peter.

"Have fun in the _library_," Sirius mocked. "Try not to get overexcited."

"Let's go," Peter said quickly before Liz could yell again.

It was a relief to escape to the library, with its silent, dust-filled air and general unrowdiness. Liz almost felt content as she settled herself at the Marauders' usual table, but worry still gnawed at her insides. What if she failed Charms again?

She focused her attention to the spell she seemed to be having particular difficulty with: Charming a book so it would grow legs and walk around. Maybe it was just because she really couldn't think how a book could walk without muscles, but she hadn't had much success with the charm, even when Professor Flitwick spent ten minutes in their last class trying to help her. Liz sighed and began to doodle absently on a bit of parchment, half- watching Peter as he flipped though his Transfiguration notes.

Liz looked back at her little stick people climbing on various structures she'd drawn for them. Remus had said she just needed to find connections between things in order to cast her spells better... People had legs, so what did they also have that a book-?

Liz grinned. A spine. Books had spines, so it made sense, to her, at least, that that was where the legs would grow. She focused on the book in front of her, trying to imagine it with legs.

"_Librus Locomortum_," she said, and prodded it with her wand. Liz quickly stifled a whoop and yanked on Remus' sleeve, feeling like she would burst with happiness as she watched the book march around on its stubby legs.

"I knew you could do it," Remus said, smiling. Liz swelled with pride, and she almost missed hearing the footsteps that were approaching from behind a nearby bookcase.

"Someone's coming," Peter whispered. Liz snatched her book and shoved it into her bag, where it kicked its feet in protest at the treatment. The three children leaned over the table, putting their heads together conspiratorially. It was a close call.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked suspiciously. She shifted her armload of textbooks to get a better look at them.

"Nothing," they chorused.

Sarah sighed. "Let me guess- you're plotting."

"What? No!" objected Peter. "We're not talking about pranks-"

Liz elbowed him.

"I mean, er-"

Lily glared at them. "I know you're going to try something at the end of the year," she said, "And I don't intend to let it happen!"

"Lily, nothing's going to happen," Remus began, but she cut him off.

"I thought you were better than them," she said, gesturing towards Peter and Liz.

"Hey!" Liz protested, feeling heat rise to her cheeks. She began to stand, but Remus grabbed the back of her robes and pulled her don before she could do something stupid.

"Maybe you'd better leave," Remus said apologetically, "Before Liz tries to hex you."

Lily hesitated a moment, still eyeing them, but she turned and marched away. Sarah gave them a half-apologetic, half-warning glance before hurrying after her friend.

Remus turned to Liz. "You shouldn't have gotten so worked up," he said reproachfully. Liz turned her back to him, smarting at the fact that he was probably right.

They really weren't doing anything wrong, but Lily saying that Liz wasn't good for anything stung her pride.

Liz sighed and pillowed her head on her arms. Sometimes, it seemed like Lily was right. Her stupid visions were just completely useless, and her Charms block was not only hurting her in school, but indirectly hurting Remus as well. If she couldn't master the Patronus Charm, she'd have to do some extremely uncomfortable soul-searching, and she really didn't want that.

It might turn up some stuff she preferred to ignore.

"You know what? I'm done studying," Liz said abruptly. She stood, crammed her books into her bag, and headed back to the Gryffindor common room, hoping James and Sirius were still messing around. She laughed at the thought. Even when they were trying to be serious, they were never able to sit still for long. Of course they were messing around.

* * *

"Okay, enough messing around," James said as soon as the others left for the library. "Let's work on the map some more."

"Why don't you want the others working on it, too?" Sirius asked. "Or at least Remus? He doesn't have problems with Charms like Liz and Peter."

James shrugged as he pulled out several large sheets of parchment. "I dunno. I just kind of wanted to work on it with you- you know, just the two of us."

Sirius grinned. "Sounds good to me."

The two boys made themselves comfortable on the floor in the middle of the dorm, where they's have a clear shot at measuring the walls without having to get up.

"So, we're able to measure rectangular rooms just fine," James said, flipping through their stolen cartography book and pushing his glasses further up his nose. "Now we need to do circular rooms." He frowned at the book, trying to make sure he was reading it correctly. "It says, 'C equals two...two...' uh, I don't know what that symbol is." He pointed to a figure that looked like it had escaped from Remus' Ancient Runes book, with two curved legs supporting a wavy top line. "And then R," James finished. He sat back and looked at Sirius. "I don't suppose you know what that means?"

"Of course I do," Sirius said indignantly. James spread his hands in an obvious, 'go on' gesture. "It means... er, well, the C obviously stands for _circle_, and the R means _round_, and the squiggly thing is short for _three_, so a circle equals twice three rounds."

James just looked at him. "Really."

Sirius grinned and lay back on the floor, his hands behind his head. "Nah, I don't know what it means. Check the book, will you?"

James flipped though the pages, but he quickly slammed it shut in frustration. "It just says the circumference is twice the radius times that odd symbol! What the bloody hell is a radius?"

"Did you say Sir Cumference? D'you think Sir Cadogan knows him?"

James rubbed his forehead. "See, this is why I hate books. They always find a way to make you feel stupid."

"You _are_ stupid," Sirius teased. James swatted him.

"Shut it, you." He opened the book again and found the page he'd been on, looking for anything that might further clarify. "Well, it says here that thingy can be used for large rooms, so you don't have to measure all the way around."

"Well, we're going to have to do that until we figure out what it means," Sirius said, shrugging. "We could probably ask Remus, I bet he knows."

"Yeah, but he's in the _library_." Both boys grimaced. "We'll just have to wait." James pulled out his wand. "Now, let's get started."

They soon found out, however, that it was impossible to measure the dorm room. Their beds were pushed against the wall, and the ceiling sloped upward so that it was narrower than the floorspace.

"Well, that's that," Sirius said. "Want to play a game of Exploding Snap?"

Halfway through their game, there was a knock on the door. "Can I come in?"

Sirius and James looked at each other. "Liz?" Sirius mouthed. James shrugged. "Sure, I guess."

Liz pushed open the door and crossed over to Peter's bed, where she fell backwards onto it, spread-eagle. "I just want this year to be over," she groaned.

"You need to take a break from studying," James laughed. "Here, we can start our game over-"

"It's not that- well, it kind of is- but Evans was being obnoxious and I decided to leave." Liz shot James a look. "Your prank idea is making her suspicious."

"Well, that's kind of what we're trying to do, isn't it?" James said. "besides, if we aren't actually going to do anything, why were you getting so upset?" He flicked a card at her. It landed on her stomach, but Liz didn't notice it until it exploded. "Agh!" she yelled. "James!" She brushed herself off and glared at him.

"Come on, Eb, what's wrong?"

Liz scratched the back of her head. "Don't worry about it. I don't think you want to hear me whining."

"Yeah, no," Sirius said. "Look, are you going to play or not?"

Liz smiled. "I guess so."

* * *

Finals passed quickly, to Remus' relief. It sucked, trying to remember the theory of relative equality for potions, list the stages of basic transfiguration, and write an essay on the past three goblin wars while recovering from the full moon. His right hand ached, his back still had several deep scratches, and he was dead-tired, but he insisted on taking the exams with the other students.

For once, though, Remus understood what it was like to be James and Sirius- at least when it came to not having to study. Defence Against the Dark Arts had been ridiculously easy for him this year, mostly because he could focus on the lesson instead of keeping an eye on the teacher's fist in case he had to duck. In fact, Professor Lovegood had been very encouraging as a teacher, and did her best to make sure the students were learning what they needed. Some of her lessons might have been...odd...but other than her imaginary creatures, Remus had to admit that the professor really knew her stuff. He was looking forward to having her as a teacher next year.

Remus, once again, was the first one finished with the exam, so he decided jis extra time would be best spent doing some last-minute studying for Charms, which was their next and last final. As the sand in Professor Lovegood's hourglass trickled into the bottom chamber, more and more students hurried to the front with their papers.

Once the last student had finished, Professor Lovegood stacked the exams on her desk, then leaned against it, surveying the class. She gave them a sad smile.

"Before you all leave for the summer, I'd like to let you know that I won't be coming back next year."

The students burst out with protests, Remus among them. The professor held up her hand, but it was almost a full minute before everyone had quieted enough so she could speak.

"One of my colleagues sent me an owl yesterday with news that there has been an increase in suspected monorian activity near the Congo, so as soon as the year is over, I'll be going back to Africa." Though obviously sad that she'd be leaving, Remus could see the excitement shining in her large eyes.

His hear sank; Professor Lovegood was a brilliant teacher. He didn't want her to leave.

He also didn't want her to be replaced with another nut job- the bad kind- like Dranseau.

"I'm going to miss all of you."

The bell rang and the classroom slowly emptied. Many students stopped by Professor Lovegood's desk to say their farewells.

Remus hung back, not wanting to be rushed by the line. Someone tapped him on the shoulder and he spun, but it was just James.

"You okay, mate?"

Remus shrugged. "I guess."

James gave him a searching look, but all he did was clap Remus on the back- not noticing his wince- and hurried to join the dwindling line.

Remus gingerly rubbed his shoulder, feeling the bandage through his robes. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stop aggravating it, knowing it was already going to take long enough to heal.

Peter appeared next to him. "Do you...?"

"Go ahead without me," said Remus.

Peter gave him a half-smile. "We'll wait for you."

Remus hovered by his desk until everyone had left, then hesitantly walked to the front. "Erm... Professor Lovegood?"

"Yes, Remus?" The teacher looked at him questioningly.

Remus held his hand out. "I just wanted to say thank you for teaching this year."

"No need to thank me," she said, though she took his hand and shook it firmly. "I really did enjoy it." Remus tried not to flinch at her gripping his injured hand, but she noticed and quickly let go. "My apologies," she said, giving it a gentle pat. Remus shrugged self-conciously.

"Well, good luck on your expedition," he said. Just as he turned to go, Professor Lovegood gave him a gentle one-armed hug.

"Remus, I want you to listen to me," she said, suddenly sounding serious. "You're a very bright student, not to mention much kinder than most. Don't you dare listen to anyone, teacher or student, who tries to tell you you're a bad person. Promise?"

Remus was more than a little startled, but he nodded hurriedly.

"You take care of yourself," Professor Lovegood said. "Enjoy your summer."

Remus offered her a smile. "You, too."

**OoOoOoO**

The Charms practical was dull, but at least it was easy. Remus just hoped that all of Liz's studying had finally paid off for her.

When he exited the exam room, he found Liz and Sirius lying on the floor, arm wrestling. Liz was losing every time, but she kept demanding rematches despite the fact that she was obviously outmatched.

"Hey, Moony," Sirius said, glancing up. Liz was straining to push his arm down, but Sirius looked like he was putting forth hardly any effort.

"How do you think you did?" Remus asked. Liz didn't look upset, just focused on the match.

"I-" she began, breaking her concentration. Her arm slammed against the floor with a _crack_. Remus winced, but Liz just shook her hand and made a rude gesture at Sirius. "I think...I think I actually did okay." She sighed, obviously relieved, but her face fell after a moment. "But, even if I didn't, there's nothing I can do about it now."

"Cheer up," Sirius said. "Look, we're-"

The door to the exam room opened and Ravenclaw Mason MacMillan came out before Sirius could stop his sentence.

"-still going to pull our prank to...night... Crap." The three Marauders froze. Mason blinked several times, then hurried away, probably to spread the word.

"Way to go, Sirius," Remus said in a carrying voice. Mason glanced over his shoulder and quickened his pace.

"Could we have asked for better timing?" Sirius laughed. "I can't wait until this evening!"

Remus tried to hide a smile, but he had to agree. he was looking forward to their prank.

**OoOoOoO**

"Hey-"

"Nope," James said, sitting up quickly. "I don't know what Mason told you, but we aren't doing anything, nothing at all whatsoever!"

Mary crossed her arms and frowned at James. Remus lifted his book slightly to cover up a grin when James actually leaned back in his chair. The little first-year girl looked frighteningly similar to Lily at the moment.

"You're not really helping your case, you know," she said cooly.

"Look, Mary," Sirius said, swinging his legs off the couch and throwing a casual arm over the girl's shoulders, "Who would you be more inclined to believe? Mason, or your own housemate?" He grinned and ruffled Mary's hair, but she swatted his hand away and squirmed out of his grip.

"You're not really expecting me to trust your word, are you?" Mary huffed. "Why would you do this to Gryffindor on the last day of term? We're in the lead, but we're going to lose the House Cup AGAIN if you let another cage of pixies loose like Lily said you did once, or- or- ugh!" She threw her hands in the air and stomped away. "I'm telling Professor McGonagall," she yelled over her shoulder.

Liz and Peter, who had been playing chess on the hearth rug, buried their faces in their hands to muffle their laughter. "I swear, this just keeps getting better and better," Liz said. "Checkmate," she added.

Peter sighed and began to pack away his set. "Good game," he said. Liz looked like she was ask for another, but she shrugged and scooped up her own set.

James still looked a little worried about Mary's threat. "What if McGonagall bans us from the feast?" he asked.

Remus slipped a scrap of parchment into his book to mark his spot and set it down. "I really doubt that'll happen, since dinner is in five minutes," he said mildly.

The Marauders grinned at one another as they stood to go. "Y'know, it might not be the most disruptive prank we have done or will do," James mused, "But you can't argue that it doesn't have an aspect of psychological terror attached to it."

"I dunno, those bats were pretty traumatizing," Liz said. "How many students do you think are now terrified of them because of what happened on Halloween?"

"I thought that wasn't our fault," Remus said pointedly. Liz blinked, but when she saw what he was getting at, she grinned sheepishly.

"Do you have the cloak, James?" Sirius asked. James patted the front of his robes; Remus noticed they were oddly lumpy.

"Do you really need to ask?"

The Great Hall was already pretty full of excited students when they arrived. Everyone was in high spirits, as they would be returning home the next day. Remus smiled at the magnificent scarlet and gold hangings that celebrated Gryffindor's victory in the House Cup, but he couldn't help but sigh inwardly. The year had gone by too quickly. He didn't want to leave just yet.

Some of the students fell silent when the Marauders entered, and several heads turned to watch as they made their way to their regular seats.

Liz nudged Remus and made a show of looking anxiously at the ceiling. Remus copied her, though he tried to make it look more subtle.

"This is going to be good," James said as he and Peter sat opposite the other three, but he fell silent as Professor Dumbledore stood up.

"A shame to see another year draw to a close," he said. "Though it is sad, I ask that you remember the good times you had... as well as those whose lives were ended by Lord Voldemort."

A murmur ran through the Hall; several students actually flinched at the name.

"We mustn't forget the dead, just as we mustn't forget that life goes on," Dumbledore continued. "We mustn't forget that, no matter how dark times may become, we will always have something worth fighting for. I want all of you to have a safe summer term, and remember to tell those you love how much they mean to you.  
"Now, I believe it is time to announce the point totals for the year," he said, and the mood abruptly lightened. "In fourth place, with three hundred and twelve points, is Ravenclaw. In third, with three hundred and fifty-seven points, Slytherin. In second, Hufflepuff, with four hundred points exactly, and in first place, with four hundred and twenty-five points is Gryffindor!"

The Gryffindors erupted into cheers; Remus was certain that he was the only one who noticed Dumbledore lean over to Professor McGonagall and say something that looked suspiciously like the words, 'Assuming nothing chaotic occurs within the hour.' Professor McGonagal's lips thinned in response.

"Congratulations for a very good year. Let us eat!"

"Okay, guys- scarf!" James ordered. Remus helped himself to a fat slab of steak, heaped a small mountain of potatoes to his plate, and poured gravy over the lot before digging in. He only spared a glance at the others to see how much time he would have to eat. Judging by the amount of food on James' and Sirius' plates, he'd have just a few minutes.

Their rapid eating didn't go unnoticed by the other students, who quickly decided to copy them. In response, the Marauders just ate faster.

Before he knew it, his plate was empty. There was nothing for it but to wait for the signal.

As soon as the food disappeared and was replaced by the desserts, James grabbed a handful of chocolates and nodded. The Marauders suddenly dived under the table, whereupon James yanked the Invisibility Cloak out and threw it over them. They managed to crawl out from under the bench before the panic set in.

"Go, go, go," James hissed, and they broke into a run.

"Our feet-" Peter started.

"Nobody'll notice, now come on!"

Students were lunging for the cover of the tables like it was Halloween, pushing each other so they could avoid whatever was falling from the ceiling- which was nothing. James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and Liz watched from under the cloak as the frantic scramble began to die down as students gradually realized they'd been had. James, Sirius, and Liz were doubled over in barely-suppressed hysterics, Peter was laughing so hard there were tears in his eyes, and Remus was grinning broadly, a sense of elation swelling in his chest. It was disruptive, it was panic-inducing, and it was hysterical, but the best part was that they couldn't get into trouble. All _they'd_ done was duck under a table. It wasn't _their_ fault everyone else had freaked out. In other words, it was the perfect prank.

Well, for Remus, at least.

"That was brilliant," Sirius snickered. "We'd better go, before someone spots one of our feet on its own."

Laughing and feeling like his sides might split, Remus fled with his friends.

They raced back to the common room, laughing uproariously in a moment of wonderful childhood joy that would be few and far between in the coming months.

Despite the success of their prank, the mood in the dorm that night was hollow. A sense of emptiness filled the room, a sense that tonight was the last night they'd have to enjoy before they would have to face the real world.

"D'you know if we'll be able to come over again?" Peter asked James as they were packing their things.

James grimaced. "I have no idea. Mum might not want anyone over... y'know, in case of another attack." He glanced at Sirius. "But, erm, if your family gets to be unbearable, you're welcome to come over."

"So, I can just meet mum at the station and then just go home with you?" Sirius said quickly. Remus chuckled softly, but Sirius heard it regardless. "What are you laughing at?" he said with a playful growl.

Remus smiled. "Oh, nothing." He ducked his head, pretending to rummage in his trunk so he wouldn't meet their eyes and burst out laughing again. He had to maintain the appearance of _some_ maturity, at least.

There was a soft knock on the door and Sirius perked up. "I bet that's Liz," he said, hurrying to open it.

"Can I come in?" Liz asked. "The girls are driving me crazy."

"Yeah, sure. Hey-" Sirius looked around the room. "In fact, want to spend the night here again? It might be our last time together until next year."

"I suppose," Liz said. "I need to get my blanket and pillow, at least."

James, who had sidled over to Remus, said, "Why? Are you planning on sleeping on the floor?" I'm sure Re- ow!"

Remus stomped, hard, on James' foot before he could finish his sentence.

Liz wrinkled her nose. "I'd rather sleep on the floor. _Your_ bed smells funny, Sirius talks in his sleep, and Peter kicks. Besides, it's be more than a little awkward, sharing, don't you think? Besides, the floor's, uh- fine." She kicked a dirty sock into the air and James reached out and caught it. He inspected it for a moment.

"Nope, not mine," he said. "Peter, catch!"

Peter ducked as the balled-up sock hit the wall behind him. "I think that's Sirius'," he said, eyeing it.

Sirius hurried over and grabbed the sock. He tossed it over his shoulder so it landed in his trunk. "There," he said, satisfied. "I'm all packed."

Liz stood still for a moment, then she smacked herself on the forehead. "I totally forgot to pack!" she cried. "Sorry, guys, I have to go!" And with that, she darted out the door. "See you tomorrow," she yelled as she whipped around the corner.

"Well, so much for that," James said. He rubbed his sore foot, glaring at Remus. "If you weren't so beat up right now, I'd get you back for that," he threatened.

"You might not mind embarrassing yourself in front of a girl, but I'd like to keep my dignity, thanks," Remus answered.

**OoOoOoO**

Before they knew it, they were back on the Hogwarts Express, going home. Remus could already imagine it; his mother would be there at the platform to take him home, where she would hug him tightly and ask him hundreds of questions about the year. He wondered if she'd have some cocoa waiting for him at home.

James' ego certainly got a huge boost during the ride home. Several Gryffindors looked in to their compartment to compliment on the Marauders' being able to scare the whole school and not lose any points. Even Lily, Liz had told them, had commented on it last night in the dorms. If the older students' praises didn't make James' head explode with pride, Remus thought, that certainly would.

As the trip drew to a close, the Marauders exchanged hugs, knowing it would be unwise to linger on the platform. Though they had managed to mostly put it out of their minds while they were safe at Hogwarts, they couldn't help but remember the attack on James' home. It wouldn't surprise them if the Death Eaters tried to hit the platform. It was the perfect target, after all; the defenseless children and quite a few muggle parents wouldn't be able to do much against cold- blooded killers, and Remus didn't know how well most of the wizard parents knew how to duel.

The Hogwarts Express pulled into the station, and Remus spotted his mother waiting for him by the exit. He turned to look at his friends.

"Keep in touch," James reminded him. "And we'll come visit you over the summer."

"I'd rather-" Remus tried to say.

"You can't keep us away, so don't even try," Sirius said firmly. "Look, I've figured out my Patronus, I'll bet James can get his while he's at home, but we're going to need to help Liz and Peter, and since you're the one who told us about Patronuses in the first place-"

"But I'm not an expert," Remus protested.

"I'd bet if you tried a bit harder, you'd be great," Liz said. Her eyes flicked to the window and she stood. "My mum's here," she said. She hesitated. "I guess this is good-bye, for a while."

She hugged all of them, then grabbed her trunk and began to haul it outside. She only looked back to give them a sad smile.

"I should go, too," Remus said. He hugged them as well, then made his way off the train.

He stopped in front of his mum, who caught him up in a hug. "How are you feeling, sweetie?"

Remus smiled up at her. "Much better now that exams are over," he said, grinning faintly. She kissed him on the forehead. Remus heard a wolf-whistle, and he turned to see James and Sirius hanging out their window, waving to him. Remus waved to them, then turned back to his mother. "Let's go home."

* * *

**A/N: Whew! Finally finished! Now I can get started on the one I've really been looking forward to- Black Moon! It'll hopefully update a lot faster, as I'm much more excited about the plot I have for that one. **

**Again, don't know when the first chapter will be out, but there'll be a spoof chapter posted on here so you'll know I've uploaded a new story. So YAY-face.**

**Please review. I'm lonely. My little review button friend is lonely. WHY DOES WE GETS NO HUGGLES?**

**And I need the motivation. Siriusly, like you would not believe.**

**Until next time,**

**-Dndchk**


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